Author Type

Graduate Student

Date of Award

2024

Document Type

Thesis

Publication Status

Version of Record

Submission Date

October 2026

Thesis/Dissertation Advisor [Chair]

Ellis, Meredith B.

Abstract

This thesis focuses on identifying the presence of porotic hyperostosis in a sample made up of 119 individuals to a) assess the possible causes of porotic hyperostosis in the ancient Ecuadorian coastal societies, b) reconsider porotic hyperostosis as a nutritional stress marker, and c) propose bartonellosis as an alternative cause for the appearance of porotic lesions in the skull over 4,000 years in the Northern Andes. By applying the BoPLE (Bone Porous Lesions Evaluation) method, results obtained and clinical evidence propose that parasite infections and iron deficiencies are two of the probable causes of porotic hyperostosis in the prehistory of the Ecuadorian coast. Furthermore, the results suggested that a female skull associated with Valdivia culture phase II (3,300 – 2,800 BCE) is Ecuador's oldest record of this symptom. Likewise, the clinical characteristics of bartonellosis suggests it to be a plausible cause of porotic hyperostosis in ancient Ecuador.

Extent

167 p.

Comments

Includes bibliography.|Thesis (MA)--Florida Atlantic University, 2024.|FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection|Includes bibliography.

Identifier

FA00014374

Format

pdf

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