Abstract
This study discusses the biological and social implications of a disabling injury suffered by a Late Holocene hunter-gatherer from Northeastern Patagonia. Osseous modifications were analysed through macroscopy, radiography, computed tomography, and three-dimensional models. The differential diagnoses followed bioarchaeological and modern clinical literature, and the overall case was interpreted within the Bioarchaeology of Care theoretical framework. The individual presented a healed fracture of the lateral tibial plateau, a highly disabling injury of the inferior limb, which constrained its locomotion and could have caused new demands on other parts of the body. The restricted mobility produced by this type of fracture and the state of remodelling imply that the individual received different levels of interpersonal attention throughout the progression of the healing process. The model of care for this individual recognizes at least a stage of “direct support” for basic tasks in the short-/medium-term and then “accommodation assistance” in the long-term while he became more autonomous. Apart from thoroughly describing an infrequent injury, this study case provides clear evidence of interpersonal care strategies among Patagonian hunter-gatherers.
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Acknowledgements
We thank the anonymous reviewers for their comments that improved the manuscript. Our special gratitude goes to the Hospital Español de La Plata for providing us with computed tomography scans and to Daniel Arias from Hospital Escuela-Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias of the Universidad Nacional de La Plata for taking the radiographs.
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This work was supported by Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (PIP-3204) and Agencia Nacional de Promoción de la Investigación (PICT-2019–04547).
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RV and SA performed the general osteological analysis and palaeopathological characterization. VE contributed to current clinical knowledge on traumatology to interpret pathologies and functional consequences. RV, SA, and PL contributed to the conceptualization, discussion, writing, and editing of the work.
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Romano, V., Serna, A., Vega, E. et al. A disabling injury reveals interpersonal care among hunter-gatherers in Patagonia. Archaeol Anthropol Sci 14, 188 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12520-022-01663-7
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12520-022-01663-7