Medieval trabecular bone architecture: The influence of age, sex, and lifestyle

Abstract

Osteoporosis has become a growing health concern in developed countries and an extensive area of research in skeletal biology. Despite numerous paleopathological studies of bone mass, few studies have measured bone quality in past populations. In order to examine age- and sex-related changes in one aspect of bone quality in the past, a study was made of trabecular bone architecture in a British medieval skeletal sample. X-ray images of 5-mm-thick coronal lumbar vertebral bone sections were taken from a total of 54 adult individuals divided into three age categories (18-29, 30-49, and 50+ years), and examined using image analysis to evaluate parameters related to trabecular bone structure and connectivity. Significant age-related changes in trabecular bone structure (trabecular bone volume (BV/TV), trabecular number (Tb.N), trabecular separation (Tb.Sp), and anisotropic ratio (Tb.An)) were observed to occur primarily by middle age with significant differences between the youngest and two older age groups. Neither sex showed continuing change in trabecular structure between the middle and old age groups. Age-related changes in bone connectivity (number of nodes (N.Nd) and node-to-node strut length (Nd.Nd)) similarly indicated a change in bone connectivity only between the youngest and two older age groups. However, females showed no statistical differences among the age groups in bone connectivity. These patterns of trabecular bone loss and fragility contrast with those generally found in modern populations that typically report continuing loss of bone structure and connectivity between middle and old age, and suggest greater loss in females. The patterns of bone loss in the archaeological samples must be interpreted cautiously. We speculate that while nutritional factors may have initiated some bone loss in both sexes, physical activity could have conserved bone architecture in old age in both sexes, and reproductive factors such as high parity and extended periods of lactation could have played a key role in female bone maintenance in this historic population. The study of qualitative elements (such as trabecular architecture) is vital if we are to understand bone maintenance and fragility in the past.

Hip fractures in the Portuguese archaeological record

“…Hip fractures are regarded as unusual traumatic events in the archaeological record (Ortner, 2003;Agarwal et al, 2004). Notwithstanding, there are increasing numbers of palaeopathological reports that refer to this type of fracture (e.g.…”

“…Lovejoy and Heiple, 1981;Grauer and Roberts, 1996;Lovell, 1997;Judd and Roberts, 1998;Alvrus, 1999;Jurmain, 1999;Neves et al, 1999;Domett and Tayles, 2006;Djuric et al, 2006;Mitchell, 2006) but the majority of them are the result of a traumatic episode and do not reflect any frailty intrinsic to the bone itself (Dequeker et al, 1997). Fragility fractures, specifically hip fractures, are regarded as unusual occurrences in archaeological skeletal material (Ortner, 2003;Agarwal et al, 2004). A few years ago, Brickley (2002) stated that there were only two published cases of hip fracture in archaeologically derived bone, one from Roman Britain (Roberts and Manchester, 1995) and another from 12th dynasty Egypt (Dequeker et al, 1997), but evidence of fracture of the proximal femur in the archaeological record is growing (e.g.…”

Brief communication: Two and three‐dimensional analysis of bone mass and microstructure in a bog body from the Iron Age

“…Bone quantity and quality has already been studied in past populations (Kneissel et al, 1994;Agarwal and Grynpas, 1996;Agarwal et al, 2004;Brickley et al, 2007). However there is no data on cancellous bone in bog bodies available.…”

“…Grote et al have described another parameter of connectivity the trabecular bone pattern factor (TBPf) for the human spine and showed a higher connectivity in the cervical spine than in the lumbar spine and a decrease of connectivity with age (Grote et al, 1995). There has been a steady interest in the paleopathology of bone diseases and especially of osteoporosis, as osteoporosis is a growing health concern in the aging populations of developed countries (Agarwal et al, 2004). Most of these studies concentrate on loss of bone mass with a variety of methodologies (Pfeiffer and Lazenby, 1994;Agarwal and Grynpas, 1996).…”

A Look from the Inside: MicroCT Analysis of Burned Bones

“…This approach is relatively new in archaeology and offers the opportunity to develop and improve analytical protocols for zooarchaeological research into bone microstructure. Since the physical properties of mammal bone are related to age and adaptation to mechanical loads, characteristics of bone microstructure can be indicative of age-at-death and life history conditions (Agarwal et al 2004;Barak et al 2011;Boschin et al 2015;Brickley et al 1999;Macho et al 2005;Tanck et al 2001;Shackleford et al 2013). For instance, bone microstructure has the potential to yield inferences about domestic stock management or to differentiate domestic individuals from their wild ancestors (Boschin et al 2015;Shackleford et al 2013).…”