Confirmation of an osteological feature, diploic veins, via three imaging modalities

Summary

Skeletons from site Tell el-Hesi (ca. 1400-1800CE; located in the southern Levant) have been undergoing renewed paleopathological analysis with the use of non-destructive imaging techniques. Upon assessing for pathology a computed radiograph image revealed multiple thin radiolucent structures within the cranial fragments of an individual that were not observed on the surface of the bone. These canal-like structures, thought to be some type of nutrient vessel, required further analysis to substantiate the finding. Three imaging modalities; multi-detector computed tomography (MDCT), fluoroscopy and additional CR images, were utilized in order to confirm the osteological feature. Curvilinear reconstructions from the MDCT data revealed the canals traveled continuously through the diploë of the skull. A copper beading wire was passed through the canals and CR images were obtained. A micro-introducer accessory guidewire was advanced further under fluoroscopy and both methods revealed the radiopaque wire path matched the pattern noted on the MDCT image. The characteristics of these structures matched best with the skeletal alterations due to diploic veins, a normal anatomical feature. The patterns left behind by these veins can provide insight into the soft tissues of the body, information on the population, as well as phylogeny and forensic anthropology.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 82nd Annual Meeting, Vancouver, BC (2017)

Keywords

Spatial Coverage

Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 16167