Paleoepidemiological Analysis of Trauma in a Roman Period Population from Kellis, Egypt, Circa 50-450 AD

This thesis analyzes human skeletal trauma in a large well-preserved sample (n =268) from the Roman period Kellis site in the Dakhleh Oasis, Egypt. Prevalence was determined for both infracranial and cranial skeletal trauma. The null hypothesis tested was that there are no differences in trauma when stratified by sex and by age cohorts (i.e., 18-35, 36-50 and 51+). Despite the overall trauma prevalence being similar between the sexes when not differentiated by age, the null hypothesis was rejected. Key differences that occurred between the sexes were that males suffered greater malintent and occupational traumas, whereas osteoporosis was the major contributor to trauma in older females. This is reflected in the age trends as males had a more linear pattern, while the female pattern peaks in the oldest age cohort. The research supports the conclusions that all studies of trauma should stratify samples by age and sex and investigate trauma using the individual as the unit of measure rather than separate skeletal elements.