El-Najjar M Y
Am J Phys Anthropol. 1979 Nov;51(4):599-618. doi: 10.1002/ajpa.1330510412.
The purpose of this study has been first, to critically review the evidence for the presence of human treponematosis and tuberculosis in the skeletal remains of prehistoric natives in the New World, and second, to report on nine new cases dated to before contact and suggesting the presence of these two disease conditions. A review of the medical history and findings by human paleopathologists leaves little doubt that both diseases originated in the Old World. The findings of this study lend further support to the fact that, although rare, human treponematosis and tuberculosis were indeed endemic in the pre-Columbia New World before contact. There is no evidence that these two diseases could have arisen independently and de novo, especially during the relatively short time since man's arrival in the New World. Where a disease has been endemic for quite some time as appears to be the case with human treponematosis and tuberculosis, milder forms of the disease and improved host response could have developed in which only the most severe cases would be observable. This explains the rarity of skeletal lesions suggestive of these two human disease conditions in prehistoric human populations.
本研究的目的，其一，是批判性地审视有关新世界史前原住民骨骼遗骸中存在人类密螺旋体病和结核病的证据；其二，是报告9例可追溯至接触前时期、提示存在这两种疾病状况的新病例。人类古病理学家对病史和检查结果的回顾几乎毫无疑问地表明，这两种疾病均起源于旧世界。本研究结果进一步支持了这样一个事实，即尽管罕见，但在接触前的哥伦比亚新大陆，人类密螺旋体病和结核病确实是地方病。没有证据表明这两种疾病可能独立且全新地出现，尤其是在人类抵达新大陆后的相对较短时间内。当一种疾病像人类密螺旋体病和结核病那样长期流行时，可能会出现病情较轻的形式以及宿主反应的改善，在这种情况下，只有最严重的病例才会被观察到。这就解释了在史前人群中提示这两种人类疾病状况的骨骼病变为何罕见。
