Objective

To carefully assess skeletal lesions in close environment context in order to evaluate whether skeletal fluorosis was present in individuals living in the prehistoric Midwest, USA.

Materials

Skeletal remains from minimally 117 individuals recovered from the Ray Site, located in western Illinois (USA) and dated to the Middle/early Late Woodland periods (50 BC-AD 400).

Methods

Macroscopic evaluation of all recovered skeletal elements.

Results

Eight individuals display a constellation of abnormal bony changes, including osteosclerosis, a high frequency of fractures, and dental abnormalities.

Conclusions

The osteosclerotic changes along with the naturally high fluoride content of west central Illinois soil and water suggests the presence of skeletal fluorosis.

Significance

This is the first report of skeletal fluorosis from archaeologically recovered human remains from North America.

Limitations

The ambiguous nature of the skeletal changes associated with fluorosis, especially in the less severe stages of the disease, renders determination of the etiology difficult.

Suggestions for Further Research

The continuation of paleopathological investigations of fluoride toxicity within archaeological communities recovered from this region with emphasis on the incorporation of biomedical and environmental data. Furthermore, complementary analyses of the chemical composition and the histological presentation of the skeletons could provide support for this diagnosis.

中文翻译：

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美国伊利诺伊州雷基地的骨骼氟中毒证据：病理评估和环境因素讨论。

目的

为了在接近的环境中仔细评估骨骼病变，以评估生活在美国史前中西部地区的个人是否存在氟中毒。

用料

从位于伊利诺伊州西部（美国）的雷遗址回收的至少117个人的骨骼残骸，其年代可追溯至中林地晚期（公元前50年至公元400年）。

方法

宏观评估所有回收的骨骼元素。

结果

八个人显示出异常的骨骼变化，包括骨硬化，高频率的骨折和牙齿异常。

结论

伊利诺伊州西部中部土壤和水的天然高氟化物含量与骨硬化变化有关，表明存在氟中毒。

意义

这是关于从考古学上从北美回收的人类遗骸中氟中毒的第一份报告。

局限性

与氟中毒有关的骨骼变化的模棱两可性质，特别是在疾病的轻度阶段，使得确定病因变得困难。

进一步研究的建议

从该地区恢复了考古界对氟化物毒性的古病理研究的继续，重点是纳入生物医学和环境数据。此外，对骨骼的化学成分和组织学表现进行补充分析可以为该诊断提供支持。