A scapula deformity in two burials from medieval England

Abstract

A scapula malformation is described in two burials from the site of the late medieval Dominican friary at Ipswich, UK. The changes appear most consistent with primary scapular neck dysplasia. One of the burials also showed clear signs of leprosy. The burials are of lay benefactors of the friary. The Ipswich Dominican friary had no known function as a leprosy hospital. Finding of burials of lepers other than in burial grounds of leprosaria is highly unusual for medieval England. Scapular neck dysplasia has a strong genetic component in its aetiology. This, coupled with its rarity, suggests a close genetic link between the two burials. The findings suggest that in this case, family ties with the friary overrode the normal medieval custom of interring lepers in leprosy hospitals. This illustrates that even rare skeletal variants may convey useful biocultural information about past populations.

Glenoid retroversion: The palaeopathological perspective

“…Asplund (1943) Palaeopathological examples of glenoid retroversion include isolated congenital bilateral dysplasia, the rarest case, but characterised by major retroversion. We have identified three such cases, all from the Middle Ages: one reported by Bennike et al (1987) and two by Mays (2009). Nevertheless, minor dysplastic lesions are not usually reported.…”

“…The palaeopathological cases published, that of Bennike et al (1987) and the two by Mays (2009), probably familial, correspond to this type of bilateral dysplasia having led to advanced osteoarthritis due to shoulder instability. These cases are identical to our case from Angers.…”

“…To the best of our knowledge, no specific palaeopathological article focuses on the sequelae of obstetric brachial plexus palsy, in which glenoid retroversion is a significant element. They are only discussed as a differential diagnosis of other pathological conditions of the scapulohumeral joint, as in Mays (2009) for cases of probable primary dysplasia. In contexts of thalassemia, infection or trauma, attention usually focuses on humeral lesions, while glenoid lesions are seen only as secondary osteoarthritis (Hershkovitz et al, 1991;Pálfi, 1997, p. 40;Molto, 2000;Kacki et al, 2013).…”

A circular depression at the spinoglenoid notch of a prehistoric Andean scapula: Plausible evidence of suprascapular nerve entrapment by a paralabral cyst

“…Mays (2005Mays ( , 2009; in Booth 2014) however, reported several observations of cystic cavities in the subchondral bone of shoulder and hip joints that may also be associated with labral tears. One investigation examined supra-acetabular cysts among a medieval skeletal sample from North Yorkshire, England (Mays 2005), another described cystic cavities in the posterior-superior margin of the glenoid fossa of a young adult male from late medieval England (Mays 2009), and another case described cystic cavities in both the glenoid fossa and the acetabulum of a middle adult male from a late Roman burial at Dorchester on Thames, Oxfordshire, England (Booth 2014:254-260). In each of these cases, Mays noted the presence of a small pore on the glenoid or acetabulum that communicated with a larger cystic cavity within the subchondral bone.…”