Geometric morphometric assessment of cranial shape change in trigonocephaly

Summary

Investigating the only known prehistoric example of trigonocephaly, a condition thought to result from premature sutura frontalis fusion, we address cranial shape changes in this condition that have been previously limited in scope and based on living individuals.

The individual derives from a prehistoric context on Santa Rosa Island (CA-SRI-24), dates to 1500-1650 AD, and is housed at the PHMA, UC Berkeley. Ninety-three 3D landmarks were collected from normal skulls for comparison (n=43, range from 6.0-8.0 years) with a Microscribe 3D digitizer and from a CT scan of the trigonocephalic (8.0 years ±24 months) using Amira 5.5. Skull shape was explored using Principle Components Analysis (PCA) on Procrustes-aligned shape variables. Principle components of the face and vault separated provide more of an insight into the overall shape change and potential cause.

The PCA reveals major shape change in the face and anterior cranial base. These changes are coupled with cranial shortening and supramastoid-level broadening. Maximum cranial breadth is displaced anteroinferiorly. The degree of shape change occurring in virtually all regions of the skull in this malformation is well beyond that currently documented and has potential implications for understanding suture closure, skull growth, brain development, and modern surgical intervention practices.

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This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 80th Annual Meeting, San Francisco, CA (2015)

Keywords

Spatial Coverage