Dataset Information

The association of parturition scars and pelvic shape: A geometric morphometric study.

ABSTRACT:

Objectives

Pelvic features, mostly known as parturition scars, have been extensively studied in the last decades and are frequently investigated in archaeological and forensic contexts. It is still unclear, however, whether they really relate to pregnancy and birth, or whether these features are caused by other biomechanical factors. Because the length and difficulty of labor correlates with the form of the birth canal, we studied the association between the expression of pelvic features and pelvic shape using geometric morphometrics.

Materials and methods

We scored the expression of the preauricular sulcus, margo auricularis groove, sacral preauricular extension, dorsal and ventral pubic pitting for 54 individuals from a 19th century collection and 19 individuals from the Bronze Age cemetery of Hainburg-Teichtal, Austria. Based on photogrammetric surface models, pelvic shape was captured by 331 landmarks and semilandmarks. The multivariate association between pelvic features and pelvic shape was explored by partial least squares analysis.

Results

Within the female subsample, we detected a significant association of a constrained birth canal with a strong expression of the preauricular sulcus, the margo auricularis groove, and a retroverted position of the acetabulum. No significant association was found among males.

Discussion

This suggests that difficult or prolonged labor may indeed cause more strongly expressed pelvic features, presumably because of increased strain of the pelvic ligaments during birth. Furthermore, the retroversion of the acetabulum, which is known to cause sacroiliac joint dysfunction, changes the strain on pelvic ligaments and can thus also result in the development of pronounced pelvic features.

SUBMITTER: Waltenberger L

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7898533 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Publications

The association of parturition scars and pelvic shape: A geometric morphometric study.

Waltenberger Lukas L Pany-Kucera Doris D Rebay-Salisbury Katharina K Mitteroecker Philipp P

American journal of physical anthropology 20201209 3

<h4>Objectives</h4>Pelvic features, mostly known as parturition scars, have been extensively studied in the last decades and are frequently investigated in archaeological and forensic contexts. It is still unclear, however, whether they really relate to pregnancy and birth, or whether these features are caused by other biomechanical factors. Because the length and difficulty of labor correlates with the form of the birth canal, we studied the association between the expression of pelvic features ...[more]

PMID: 33295660

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Dataset Information

The association of parturition scars and pelvic shape: A geometric morphometric study.

Objectives

Materials and methods

Results

Discussion

Publications

The association of parturition scars and pelvic shape: A geometric morphometric study.

Similar Datasets

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