Bone growth, limb proportions and non-specific stress in archaeological populations from Croatia

Abstract

Background: The effect of environmental factors and, in particular, non-specific stress on the growth patterns of limbs and other body dimensions of children from past populations is not well understood.

Aims: This study assesses whether growth of mediaeval and post-mediaeval children aged between 0–11.5 years from Adriatic (coastal) and continental Croatia varies by region and by the prevalence and type of non-specific stress.

Methods: Dental ages were estimated using the Moorrees, Fanning and Hunt (MFH) scoring method. Growth of long bone diaphyses (femur, tibia, humerus, radius and ulna) was assessed by using a composite Z-score statistic (CZS). Clavicular length was measured as a proxy for upper trunk width, distal metaphyseal width of the femur was measured as a proxy for body mass and upper and lower intra-limb indices were calculated. Differences between sub-sets sampled by (a) region and (b) active vs healed non-specific stress indicators and (c) intra-limb indices were tested by Mann--Whitney U-tests and Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA).

Results: Adriatic children attained larger dimensions-per-age than continental children. Children with healed stress lesions had larger dimensions-per-age than those with active lesions. No inter-regional difference was found in intra-limb indices.

Conclusion: These findings highlight the complexity of growth patterns in past populations and indicate that variation in environmental conditions such as diet and differences in the nature of non-specific stress lesions both exert a significant effect on long bone growth.

• Children
• growth patterns
• long bones
• mediaeval

Acknowledgements

We are grateful to Noreen von Cramon-Taubadel for her comments and advice. We thank the Editor and two anonymous reviewers for their comments and suggestions on earlier drafts. This research was supported by the European Research Council Starting Grant (ERC-2010-StG 263,441).

Supplementary material available online

Supplementary Tables 1–2

Supplementary Figures 1–5.