A Possible case of Facio-Auriculo-Vertebral sequence (FAVs) in an adult female from medieval Iceland (13th-16th Century).

OBJECTIVE: This paper presents a possible case of Facio-Auriculo-Vertebral sequence (FAVs) in an adult female from Haffjarðarey, Western Iceland (1200-1563 CE) and a brief review of associated terminology. MATERIALS: The skeletal remains of a single adult female (HFE-A-34, 18-24 years old), excavated in 1945 by the National Museum of Iceland. METHODS: We carried out macroscopic examination of the cranium and mandible in 2017. RESULTS: Right side unilateral asymmetric craniofacial dysplasia was identified on the cranium and mandible of HFE-A-34. CONCLUSIONS: This individual presents with anomalous craniofacial asymmetry consistent with a clinical diagnosis of FAVs. SIGNIFICANCE: This paper offers a visually distinct case of an under-represented and under-documented congenital condition for future identification within paleopathology. LIMITATIONS: Infra-cranial skeletal manifestations of FAVs would strengthen this possible diagnosis, but at this time it is not possible to definitively link the cranium and mandible of HFE-A-34 to any of the infra-cranial remains excavated from Haffjarðarey. SUGGESTIONS FOR FURTHER RESEARCH: In addition to further clarifying the variable nature of FAVs in archaeological remains, a detailed discussion of disability and the perception of disabled individuals within the medieval North Atlantic is necessary in order to understand the lived experiences of affected individuals.

Which Cheek did the Resurrected Jesus Turn?

Secular portraits are likely to show more of the left than right side of the face (hemiface). Prior research has shown that emotions are more strongly expressed by the left hemiface. In addition, the valence theory of emotion proposes that the right hemisphere is dominant for mediating negative emotions, and the left hemisphere for positive emotions. Since religious art depicting a scene such as the Resurrection of Jesus is more likely to be associated with positive emotions, we postulated that there would be a significant smaller percentage number of artistic works of the Resurrection that reveal the left side of the face of Jesus than in those art works portraying the Crucifixion. Thus, we analyzed artistic portrayals of the Resurrection of Jesus and compared them to the artistic scenes of the Crucifixion. This analysis revealed that the left side of the face of Jesus is less commonly depicted in portraits of the Resurrection than the Crucifixion. In addition, both the right hemiface, and forward-facing faces were also more commonly portrayed in painting of the Resurrection than the Crucifixion. Whereas this right-left hemiface, Resurrection-Crucifixion dichotomy may be related to right-left hemispheric difference in the mediation of emotional valence other factors such as agency, action-intention, and biblical text may have influenced these differences.

[The bronze head of Seuthes III. A maxillofacial surgery case from antiquity]. / Der Kopf der Bronzestatue des thrakischen Königs Seuthes III. Ein Kiefer- und Gesichtschirurgischer Fall aus der Antike.

The authors had the opportunity to visit the tumulus of Golijama Kosmatka in todays central Bulgaria and the there found burial artefacts of Seuthes III., a Thracian King who lived in the 4th-3rd century BC. The beautiful bronze head of the king found in front of the burial site shows the typical sequelae of a dislocated lateral mid face fracture in all details. These findings do fit and also confirm the troublesome times this local king went through after the death of Alexander the Great.

[Radiological and anthropometric analysis of the symmetry and direction of evolution of skulls from some historic populations]. / Analiza symetrii i kierunku zmian w budowie czaszek wybranych populacji dziejowych na podstawie badan radiologicznych i antropometrycznych.

INTRODUCTION: Asymmetry is a common phenomenon in nature. It is typical for the human body and for the skull as its part. Knowledge of asymmetry and normal anatomy, especially of variability which does not represent pathology but distinguishes individuals is the basis for correct interpretation of radiological findings concerning the skull both in research and diagnostic examinations widely performed in surgery, neurology, neurosurgery, internal medicine, or pediatrics. Analysis of fluctuating asymmetry reveals the influence of stress factors on human development and the ability of the organism to defend itself against stress. The aim of this work was to analyse the asymmetry of skulls from some historic populations and to describe changes in their anatomy over the ages. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The material consisted of three skull groups: one contemporary with 82 skulls and two mediaeval (52 skulls from Cedynia and 77 skulls from Gródek on Bug). Direct measurements were done and the skull was X-rayed in the Posterior-Anterior and skull-base projections. Images were scanned and calibrated with MicroStation 95 Academic Edition software. Helmert's transformation with first-order polynomial was done to attain a suitable geometry. Vectorisation of axes and areas was performed on reference material. Using tools for measurement of vector elements, the distance between bilateral points of both sides of the skull were obtained. Data were analysed statistically. RESULTS: The results of measurements were used to study the directional and fluctuating asymmetry. It was found that asymmetry of the skull was present in both historic populations. The following conclusions were drawn: changes in the distribution of directional and fluctuating asymmetry for individual dimensions have taken place over the ages. A high level of directional asymmetry in the facial part and fluctuating asymmetry in the calvaria is typical for contemporary skulls. The reverse is true for relations in the case of mediaeval skulls. A greater level of fluctuating asymmetry in contemporary skulls reveals greater influence of the developmental stress on the contemporary population and its weaker ability for compensation.

Masks depicting hemifacial microsomia and cleft lip.

All masks are created by craftspeople. Accordingly, most masks are generally predictable in dimensions, and the portraitures usually depict the faces and heads of humans. The authors found some masks representing the features of craniofacial anomalies, such as hemifacial microsomia and, rarely, cleft lip. Reviewing the legends of wearing masks with a medley of grotesque features, the authors could deduce the tone of society in those days. A mask, "crooked mouth," of Native Americans shows typical lineament of hemifacial microsomia. The deformity of the face was legendarily regarded as resulting from trauma caused by either "one's fault" or a "curse of God." "Yangban" (noblemen of aristocratic class) customarily wore the cleft lip mask in age-old Korean masquerade revels. Laymen ridiculed Yangban by making cleft lip masks for them. The authors presume that the victims of craniofacial deformities were treated contemptuously at that time.

Anaplastología en cirugía maxilofacial / Anaplastology in maxillofacial surgery

La Anaplastología nace del sentimiento del género humano de recuperar lo perdido y de mantener la apariencia física con el resto de sus congéneres. Vemos que en el transcurso de la historia, en todas las diferentes civilizaciones y pueblos, ha sido un factor de constante perfección. En nuestros días, con la aparición de plásticos y los avances en la cirugía oncológica, así como el incremento de los accidentes de tráfico y laborales, la Anaplastología ofrece una opción terapéutica de posibilidades estéticas sorprendentes, ya que, por una parte, integra a los enfermos en su entorno sociolaboral por la disminución del trauma psíquico de difícil curación y, por otra, nos permite una visión directa de la zona extirpada en enfermos oncológicos, ofreciendo de esta manera una revisión quirúrgica desde los primeros momentos de la aparición de las primeras recidivas.Por último, la disminución de las estancias y, por tanto, de los costos, así como la ansiedad del enfermo y alargamiento de la vida, se puede calificar de auténtico bienestar social y salud pública, labor que venimos realizando en el Centro Especial "Ramón y Cajal" de Madrid. (AU)

Medieval example of cleft lip and palate from St. Gregory's Priory, Canterbury.

An archaeologically retrieved skeleton from medieval Canterbury possibly of the late eleventh or twelfth century, displays clear evidence of cleft lip and palate. A case of cleft palate dating from the seventh century, is known from an Anglo-Saxon cemetery at Burwell. This is the first evidence for both cleft lip and palate in British archaeological material. The individual had survived into adulthood. Apart from an odontome, there was no osseous evidence of any other abnormalities. Artistic evidence of cleft lip dates to the fourth century B.C. and surgical intervention (A.D. 390) is known from China.

The Venus of Milo and the dawn of facial asymmetry research.

The dawn of facial asymmetry research dates back to the second half of the last century and started with a discussion about the asymmetry of the face of the Venus of Milo. These early observations revealed some of the lateralized patterns of the two facial halves of which we are now aware. Since these studies have up until now been completely neglected, the present review tries to provide the forgotten beginning of this avenue of lateralization research.

Asymmetry of mandibular dimensions in European skulls.

Eighteen mandibular dimensions (mm) in sex-determined, 10th-12th-century European skulls from burial sites in South-Eastern Hungary were examined to discover whether differences exist between the right and left sides. There was a statistically significant difference in only one dimension, the smallest sagittal diameter of the mandibular neck, in both males and females. The frequencies with which the various 18 dimensions were identical between right and left sides ranged from 39.9% to 82.0% in males, and from 45.9% to 83.2% in females. The examined individual dimensions appeared to be smaller on the right side in 7.0% to 33.7% (mean 19.1%) of the male cases, and in 7.1% to 29.9% (mean 17.9%) of the females, while the right side was larger in 7.7% to 50.9% (mean 22.3%) of the males and in 7.9% to 54.3% (mean 22.5%) of the females. In conclusion, asymmetry of the left and right sides was found between the measured individual mandibular dimensions on average in 41.4% of the males and 40.4% of the females.

[Asymmetry in the structure of the middle part of the facial skull]. / Die Asymmetrie im Bau des Mittelteils des Gesichtsschädels.

The results of study of the middle third of the facial region, performed on a total of 412 skulls of male individuals, lead to the following conclusions: 1. In the investigated upper section, the zygomatic bone inclusive, downwards to its lower section along the alveolar process of the maxillary bone, a complete and approximative symmetry displayed by the width values is more frequently met with, whilst asymmetry is rather rarely. In the same direction, from above downwards, the number of skulls with differences in favour of the right side decrease, whereas the number in favour of the left side increase, with the rarely observed asymmetry in the lowermost section usually involving the leftside. 2. The height of the upper jaw-bone region near the sagittal line shows more frequently symmetry (complete and approximative), and rather rarely asymmetry, whilst insofar as the zygomatic bone is concerned the opposite is observed; therefore, in the direction from medial to lateral-wards the incidence of asymmetry increases, whereas that of the symmetry decreases. In the same direction the number of skulls with differences in favour of the right side increases, while the number in favour of the left side decreases. 3. The coincidence of absolute differences recorded in 69%, respectively 61.6%, between right and left side of closely positioned dimensions (20 and 31, resp. 20 and 42) proves that the data about these dimensions are apt to determine symmetry and asymmetry manifestations with a sufficient reliability. 4. The individual values of the pairs of breadth dimensions of one and the same region of the studies craniofacial portion show a higher degree of correlation than those of different regions which is due to the differences between the latter in terms of incidence of symmetry and asymmetry in their build up. 5. The width of the middle third of the median craniofacial portion and the lateral distance of the skull Zygomaxillare--Porion do not correlate, i.e. there is no parallelism between the fluctuations of their individual values. 6. In most of the cases the bones of the external nose are symmetrical, and hence its asymmetry is attributed to the soft parts as cartilage and skin.