DESCRIPTION AND SIGNIFICANCE OF THE ACETABULAR CREASE: A POSTCRANIAL NON-METRIC TRAIT RELATED TO VARIATION IN THE BYERS 17 AREA OF HISTORICAL HIP BONE SAMPLES

B. MAFART

  MAFART B. Description, significance and frequency of the acetabular crease: a postcranial non-metric trait of the hip bone. International Journal of Osteoarchaeology, 2005,15,3,208-215.. résumé  LINK TO JOURNAL Abstract

The acetabular crease is a linear indentation located in the antero-superior quadrant of the surface of the acetabulum at the level of the Byers 17 area. Considered by paleoanthropologists as a discrete trait, it has received scarce attention and the mechanisms underlying its formation and variations according to sex and age remain largely unclear. The purpose of this study carried out on a large sample from a historical population in France was to (i) analyze variations according to side, sex and estimated age at death, (ii) assess diachronic variations, and (iii) compare prevalence in various prehistoric and historical populations. Etiological mechanisms are discussed.

Material and method: A total of hip bones from 425 subjects of both sexes and all ages were studied. Specimens were from two historical populations dating from the 11th to 13th centuries and 16th to 17th centuries. 

Results: The proportion of subjects that died young was higher in the 11th to 13th century group but the prevalence of the acetabular crease was comparable between the two groups regardless of site or laterality (unilateral or bilateral). No sexual dimorphism or correlation with age was noted at either period.

Conclusion. The acetabular crease appears to be a stable anatomical trait throughout adult life with no predominant side and no correlation with sex. The significantly higher prevalence of the acetabular crease in some Historical French sample and in Prehistoric Canadian Native populations could be linked to greater biomechanical stress during childhood in rural medieval populations and in the prehistorical period.

 

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