Bioarchaeology of the Near East, 16:51-67 (2022)

Two cases of concha bullosa in a contemporary Cypriot skeletal collection

Stephen D. Haines (1), Stacy Hackner (2), Phillip McCheyne (3), Myeashea Alexander (4), Xenia-Paula Kyriakou* (5)
(1) School of Health and Social Care, Teesside University,
Campus Heart, Southfield Rd., Middlesbrough, TS1 3BX, USA
(2) Museum of London Archaeology,
Mortimer Wheeler House, 46 Eagle Warf Road, London N1 7ED, UK
(3) Department of Anthropology, Athabasca University
Athabasca, AB T9S 3A3 Canada
(4) City University of New York, Hunter College
695 Park Ave, New York, NY 10065, USA
(5) Department of Justice Studies, Florida Gulf Coast University
10501 FGCU Blvd. South, Fort Myers, FL 33965, Florida, USA
email: xkyriakou@fgcu.edu (corresponding author)

Abstract: Concha bullosa is the hypertrophy of the superior, middle, or inferior nasal conchae, most commonly referring to the pneumatisation of the middle conchae. It is considered to be the most common anatomical variant of the osteomeatal complex, rather than a pathological development. Though it is common, its aetiology is poorly understood. It is unclear whether sex or ethnicity impacts on the prevalence of concha bullosa, though some research suggests a correlation. Some researchers have argued that concha bullosa predisposes individuals to sinusitis, but the link is not consistent.
In this paper, the authors present two new skeletal cases of bilateral concha bullosa identified in female individuals taken from the Cyprus Reference Research Collection (CRRC). This work aims to highlight the limitations associated with the palaeopathological diagnosis of inflammation and the interpretation of skeletal lesions that may be related to sinusitis or infection of the osteomeatal complex in archaeological bone, in relation to the presence of concha bullosa.

Key words: inflammation; infectious disease; osteomeatal complex; palaeopathology; bioarchaeology; sinusitis

https://doi.org/10.47888/bne-1603 | Received 25 January 2019; accepted 28 April 2023; published online 1 May 2023.

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