A. Hegyi1 ‑ A. Marcsik1 – E. Molnár1 Stafne defect in osteoarchaeological samples in Hungary A. Hegyi1 ‑ A. Marcsik1 – E. Molnár1 1Department of Anthropology, University of Szeged, Hungary, 6722 Szeged, Egyetem u. 2., Hungary e-mail: hegyia@bio.u-szeged.hu INTRODUCTION Since the first report on a posterior lingual defect by Stafne (1942), several authors have described this cortical defect under various terms, e.g. mandibular embryonic defect, late bone cyst, aberrant salivary gland tissue, developmental bone defect, posterior lingual mandibular bone depression (PLMD), static bone defect (SSBD), ectopic salivary gland, or idiopathic bone cavity. The frequency of this defect has been reported in both clinical and anthropological literature (from 0,5% to 10-15%). It occurs primarily in adult males and is located in the retromolar region, below the mylohyoid ridge, with a diameter around 13-14 mm. The clinical, radiological and anthropological literature describes some similar cavity on anterior lingual, posterior buccal or anterior buccal surface as well as bone cysts occurring on the ramus. So nowadays we can find a number of cysts under the name Stafne. MATERIAL AND METHOD The idiopathic bone cavities have been studied in the skeletal collection of the Department of Anthropology (University of Szeged, Hungary). 1089 dry mandibles (2290 individuals) were examined from 13 different cemeteries (from the Avar period to the Middle Ages). The palaeopathological investigation has been carried out using gross morphology supported by radiographic and metric data. RESULTS Case 2 On the left side of mandible (Fig. 2) of an adultus male (Pitvaros cemetery, Grave No. 140) severe Stafne defect was detected. The defect is approximately ellipsoidal, the long axis oriented antero-posteriorly. The dimension of this depression is the next: depth 1 mm, width 5 mm and length 7 mm. Case 1 The paleopathological examination of an adult male (Madaras-Bajmoki út cemetery, Grave No. 37) reveals severe Stafne defect on the left side of mandible (Fig. 1). The defect is approximately ellipsoidal, the long axis oriented antero-posteriorly. The dimension of this depression is the next: depth 4 mm, width 6,5 mm and length 11 mm. Fig. 2: Stafne defect on the left side Adult male Fig. 1: Stafne defect on the left side Adult male Case 4 The paleopathological examination of an maturus male (Bélmegyer-Csömöki Domb cemetery, Grave No. 14) reveals severe Stafne defect on the left side of mandible (Fig. 4). The defect is approximately ellipsoidal, the long axis oriented antero-posteriorly. The dimension of this depression is the next: depth 1 mm, width 3 mm and length 8 mm. Case 3 On the right side of mandible (Fig. 3) of an senium male (Szarvas Grexa Téglagyár cemetery, Grave No. 423) severe Stafne defect was observed. The defect is approximately ellipsoidal, the long axis oriented antero-posteriorly. The dimension of this depression is the next: depth 2 mm, width 6,5 mm and length 8 mm. Fig. 3: Stafne defect on the right side Senium male Case 5 The paleopathological examination of an maturus male (Kiskőrös Város alatt cemetery, Grave No. 107.) reveals severe Stafne defect on the right side of mandible (Fig. 5/a, 5/b, 5/c, 5/d). The defect is approximately ovoid, the long axis oriented antero-posteriorly. The dimension of this depression is the next: depth 2 mm, width 8 mm and length 12 mm. Fig. 5/a: Stafne defect on the right side - X ray, Senium male Fig. 4: Stafne defect on the left side Maturus male Fig. 5/b: Normal ramus Fig. 5/d: Narrowed ramus Fig. 5/c: Stafne defect on the right side, Senium male Case 6 On the right side of mandible (Fig. 6) of an maturus male (Szarvas Grexa Téglagyár cemetery, Grave No. 423) severe Stafne defect was seen. The defect is approximately ellipsoidal, the long axis oriented medio-lateral. The dimension of this depression is the next: depth 4 mm, width 10 mm and length 9 mm. Case 7 The paleopathological examination of an maturus male (Kunszállás cemetery, Grave No. 6) reveals severe Stafne defect on the left side of mandible (Fig. 7). The defect is approximately ovoid. The dimension of this depression is the next: depth 2 mm, width 7 mm and length 6 mm. Fig. 6: Stafne defect on the right side, Maturus male Case 8 The paleopathological examination of an senium male (Pitvaros-Víztározó cemetery, Grave No. 212) reveals severe filled out Stafne defect on the left side of mandible (Fig. 8). The defect is approximately ellipsoidal. The dimension of this depression is the next: width 8 mm and length 9 mm. Fig. 7: Stafne defect on the left side, Maturus male SUMMARY The recognition and identification of Stafne defect in the mandible is of great importance for the clinician as well as anthropologist. These cavities are unilateral, found mainly on the left side of the mandible. In our material this anomaly could be seen also on the right side in three cases. According literature’s data this abnormality is more frequently found in males aged above 35 years. Some authors found that this particular defect occurred in females (Lukacs and Rodríguez-Martin, 1997; 2002). However, in our examination this anomaly occured only in males. The frequency of Stafne defect is different from one article to another. In the investigated osteoarcheological samples excavated in Hungary this is 0,64 -1,3% (Farkas et al., 1993; Hegyi 2003; Kocsis et al., 1992). Fig. 8: Stafne defect on the right side, Senium male REFERENCES Farkas L.Gy., Marcsik A., Oláh S. (1993): Történeti idők embere Szegváron (A man of history in Szegvár, in Hung.). Anthropológiai Közlemények 35: 7- Hegyi, A. (2003): Frequency of developmental defects on skull and axial skeleton on skeletal collections from Middle ages and Avar period – PhD thesis, SZTE, Department of Anthropology, Szeged, Hungary Kocsis S.G., Marcsik A. and Mann R.W. (1992): Idiopathic bone cavity on the posterior buccal surface of the mandible. Oral Surgery, Oral Medicine, Oral Pathology 73: 127-130. Lukacs, J.R., Rodríguez-Martin, C. (1997): Cortical defects of the mandible: Prevalence and etiology of Stafne’s defect among prehistoric Canary Islanders - Am. J. Phys. Anthrop., Supplement 24:158-159. Lukacs, J.R., Rodríguez-Martin, C. (2002): Lingual Cortical Mandibular Defects (Stafne’s Defects): An Anthropological Approach based on Prehistoric Skeleton from the Canary Islands – Int. J. Osteoarchaeol. 12: 112-126. Stafne E.C. (1942): Bone cavities situated near the angle of the mandible. Journal of the American Dental Association 29: 1969-1972. Acknowledgements This research is supported by the the National Scientific Research Foundation (OTKA grant No. T 049614).