The lumbar spine in Neanderthals shows natural kyphosis
Quoted from:
Journal European Spine Journal
Publisher Springer Berlin / Heidelberg
ISSN 0940-6719 (Print) 1432-0932 (Online)
Issue Volume 17, Supplement 2 / September, 2008
Category Case Report
DOI 10.1007/s00586-008-0640-y
Pages 327-330
Subject Collection Medicine
SpringerLink Date Wednesday, February 27, 2008
Jochen Weber1 and Carsten Matthias Pusch2
(1) Department of Neurosurgery, Trauma Center Berlin, 12683 Berlin, Germany
(2) Institute of Anthropology and Human Genetics, University of Tübingen, 72074 Tübingen, Germany
Received: 2 October 2007 Revised: 23 January 2008 Accepted: 2 February 2008 Published online: 27 February 2008
Abstract Nowadays, lumbar spondylosis is one of the most frequent causes of lower back pain. In order to improve our understanding of the lumbar spine anatomy and functionality over time, we compared the lumbar vertebrae of Neanderthals with those of anatomically modern humans. The fossil record reports on only two Neanderthal skeletons (i.e., Kebara 2 and Shanidar 3, both predating the appearance of modern humans) with full preservation of the entire lumbar spine. Examination of these early hominids showed that they display natural lumbar kyphosis, with only mild degenerative changes of the lumbar spine (ages at death: 30–35 years, Kebara 2; and 35–50 years, Shanidar 3). This finding is highly unexpected since Neanderthals are known to have had extraordinary physical activity due to demanding living conditions. The adult lumbar spines discussed here therefore show no correlation between high physical activity and degenerative spine disease as known from recent times. We speculate that both the kyphosis itself and the massive and heavily muscled skeleton of Neanderthals are causative for the minimal bone degeneration. We conclude that a kyphotic lumbar spine is the natural anatomy in these two Neanderthal individuals. Future research will reveal if this holds true for the entire Neanderthal species.
Keywords Paleopathology - Neanderthal man - Lumbar spine - Kyphosis - Lordosis - Spondylosis