Division of Paleopathology, Department of Translational Research and New Technologies in Medicine and Surgery, University of Pisa, Via Roma 57, 56126, Pisa, Italy.
School of Medicine and Surgery, Università Campus Bio-Medico di Roma, Via Álvaro del Portillo, 21, 00128, Roma, Italy.
Int J Paleopathol. 2021 Dec;35:40-48. doi: 10.1016/j.ijpp.2021.09.001. Epub 2021 Sep 20.
This study aims to assess chronic maxillary sinusitis in an osteoarchaeological sample from the medieval rural site of Pieve di Pava (central Italy), to investigate triggers responsible for sinus inflammation, and to compare prevalence rates with coeval European rural sites.
The analysis focused on 145 10-12-century adults with at least one preserved maxillary sinus.
Sinusitis-related lesions were observed macroscopically and microscopically. Alveolar pathologies of the maxillary posterior dentition were recorded to investigate the impact of odontogenic sinusitis.
Maxillary sinusitis was observed in 23.4% of the individuals (n = 34), with similar frequencies in both sexes and bilateral sinusitis appearing more frequently than unilateral sinusitis. An association of alveolar lesions with sinusitis was found in 38.2% of cases.
Compared to coeval rural sites in Northern Europe, Pieve di Pava shows the lowest prevalence of maxillary sinusitis, likely reflecting a greater amount of time spent outdoors. Despite the small size of the sample, odontogenic sinusitis cannot be ruled out.
This is the first Italian study to investigate maxillary sinusitis and to focus on the Mediterranean area, contributing to the understanding of this condition as a health indicator in ancient populations.
Research limitations include preservation issues affecting the number of observable sinuses, the non-homogenous age distribution of the sample, and the impact of inclusion and methodological criteria on the comparability of results.
Further investigations into odontogenic sinusitis and the microscopic examination of dental calculus may provide new data on the pathogenesis of sinusitis.
本研究旨在评估来自意大利中部中世纪农村遗址皮耶韦迪帕瓦（Pieve di Pava）的 osteoarchaeological 样本中的慢性上颌窦炎，调查导致窦炎的诱因，并将患病率与同期欧洲农村遗址进行比较。
分析集中在 145 名 10-12 世纪至少有一个保留上颌窦的成年人身上。
观察宏观和微观的窦炎相关病变。记录上颌后牙的牙槽病变，以研究牙源性窦炎的影响。
23.4%（n=34）的个体出现上颌窦炎，男女患病率相似，双侧窦炎比单侧窦炎更常见。38.2%的病例中发现牙槽病变与窦炎之间存在关联。
与北欧同期农村遗址相比，皮耶韦迪帕瓦的上颌窦炎患病率最低，这可能反映出更多的时间在户外度过。尽管样本量较小，但不能排除牙源性窦炎。
这是意大利首例研究上颌窦炎并关注地中海地区的研究，有助于了解这种状况作为古代人群的健康指标。
研究的局限性包括影响可观察窦数量的保存问题、样本年龄分布不均匀以及纳入和方法学标准对结果可比性的影响。
进一步研究牙源性窦炎和牙垢的显微镜检查可能会为窦炎的发病机制提供新的数据。
