Possible Fluoride Toxicity in North America: a paleopathological assessment and discussion of modern occurrence

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dc.contributor.advisorClaire Kirchhoff
dc.contributor.committeeMemberJohn V. Planz
dc.contributor.committeeMemberRustin E. Reeves
dc.creatorNelson, Elizabeth A.
dc.date.accessioned2019-08-22T20:02:31Z
dc.date.available2019-08-22T20:02:31Z
dc.date.issued2015-12-01
dc.date.submitted2016-01-07T09:06:06-08:00
dc.description.abstractWhen toxic levels of fluoride are consumed, the pathological condition of fluorosis ensues. Skeletal fluorosis is an endemic problem in populations at risk of ingesting excess fluoride. Whether ingestion takes place as result of toxic levels of natural mineral content in water of from anthropogenic factors such as tea drinking or smoking, the results can be detrimental to an individual’s health. Fluorosis has been identified in archaeological skeletons from Bahrain, Naples, and the United Arab Emirates. While a very serious concern in some parts of the world today, the United States continues to fluoridate municipal water supplies. Although the natural geologic environment in many regions of the United States (US) is conducive to fluorosis, this condition is largely ignored in the US. This may suggest an absence of the condition in this region of the world; however, the etiology and history of this metabolic bone disease is poorly understood therefore, it may often be misdiagnosed or overlooked clinically and perhaps archaeologically. In this paper, I review clinical and epidemiological literature discussing the prevalence of fluorosis. From this review, I conclude that fluorosis may in fact be a current public health issue in the United States. This is demonstrated by the frequency of fluorosis reported in both National Research Council and Center for Disease Control documents. Furthermore, although this condition is not yet described in archaeological collections from North America, I hypothesize it may be present in the Illinois River Valley, due to the natural geologic conditions conducive to fluorosis. Skeletal signs of fluorosis, including ossification of tendinous and ligamentous attachments, an increased presence of fractures, and periosteal and sclerotic deposition, are documented in 8 individuals from the Ray Site.
dc.format.mimetypeapplication/pdf
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12503/27635
dc.language.isoen
dc.provenance.legacyDownloads20
dc.subjectMedical Sciences
dc.subjectMedicine and Health Sciences
dc.subjectpaleopathology
dc.subjectskeletal pathology
dc.subjectfluoride
dc.titlePossible Fluoride Toxicity in North America: a paleopathological assessment and discussion of modern occurrence
dc.typeThesis
dc.type.materialtext
thesis.degree.departmentGraduate School of Biomedical Sciences
thesis.degree.disciplineBiomedical Sciences
thesis.degree.grantorUniversity of North Texas Health Science Center at Fort Worth
thesis.degree.nameMaster of Science

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