Examining Reactive Arthropathy in Military Skeletal Assemblages: A Pilot Study Using the Mass Grave Assemblage from the Battle of Towton (1461)

Military personnel are often subjected to physical exertion, sleep deprivation, deficient diets, overcrowding, and stress. All of these influences capable compromising the immune system’s ability ward off disease-causing bacteria, thus explaining why historical narrative war is frequently accompanied by reports death suffering due epidemics infectious diseases. Historically some most common infections included: diarrhoea, dysentery, typhoid fever, gonorrhoea, streptococcal tonsillitis. The bacteria which cause diseases also triggering arthritis. When an arthritic condition triggered microbe it can broadly be referred as “reactive arthropathy,” spondyloarthritides (SpAs) great interest. Since associated with conditions responsible for have plagued combatants centuries, reasonable assume that reactive arthropathy was present in past military populations. This assertion tested through a prevalence study related skeletal assemblages. To test methodology gain preliminary results this research project, pilot carried out using remains from 1461 Battle Towton. deemed sound statistical results, while not significant, were promising.