Craniofacial anomalies in the Upper Missouri River over a millennium: archeological and clinical evidence

Congenital facial clefting occurs more often in Native Americans from the Upper Missouri River Basin (UMRB) than it does in the general population. However, no facial clefts were seen in 3,750 ancient UMRB skeletons. Very few reports concerning defective palate crania are in the literature of paleopathology. Findings regarding craniofacial anomalies in today's native Americans in the UMRB are presented briefly and compared to those in skeletons from this region. There is a marked difference between the frequency of anomalies which occurred in the past and those which are present today. Although the people sampled here were from many cultures and lived during different time periods, encompassing over a millenium, the fundamental denominator was a common geographic location. Reasons for the differences between the past and the present are advanced. It may be possible to estimate the frequency of anomalies which have not been found in archeological specimens but which are present today. By comparing data concerning "occult" congenital anomalies of the past with those of the present, the actual prevalence of past cranio-facial anomalies may be estimated through careful extrapolation.     

Proliferation of the juxtapapillary retinal pigment epithelium simulating malignant melanoma

Summary Four cases of pseudomelanomas of the nerve head are described; two have been studied histopathologically. All patients had in common: a) disturbance in and adjacent to the optic nerve head with ill-defined borders and a particular pattern described as mottled, mossy, or filigree; b) slight elevation of the affected tissues, but without definite tumefaction; c) fine retinal folds or striae radiating from the lesion to the macula; d) stationary or slowly progressive course; and e) enlargement of the blind spot with deterioration of vision.Only two quite similar cases could be found in the literature.

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Zusammenfassung Vier Fälle von Pseudomelanoma des Sehnervenkopfes werden beschrieben; 2 davon wurden histologisch untersucht. Als gemeinsame Merkmale bestanden: a) in der Papille oder an sie angrenzend ein Krankheitsherd mit unbestimmten Grenzen und einem besonderen Anblick, der mit einem Streifenmuster, einer Moosfläche oder einer Filigranarbeit verglichen werden kann; b) eine leichte Vorwölbung der betroffenen Gewebe, jedoch ohne daß von einer Tumormasse gesprochen werden kann; c) feine Netzhautfalten oder von der Läsion aus gegen die Makula ausstrahlende Streifen; d) ein stationärer oder nur langsam progressiver Verlauf; e) eine Vergrößerung des blinden Flecks mit Herabsetzung der Sehkraft.In der Literatur konnten nur zwei ganz ähnliche Fälle gefunden werden.

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Résumé Quatre cas de pseudo-mélanome de la papille sont décrits; l'examen anatomopathologique a été fait chez deux d'entre eux. Chez tous ces malades on a constaté: a) une anomalie dans et immédiatement à côté de la papille; ses bords sont mal délimités et son aspect très particulier a été comparé à de la mousse, à des marbrures ou à un filigrane; b) une légère saillie des tissus touchés, sans qu'il n'existe une réelle tumeur; c) de fins plis rétiniens et des stries irradiant de la lésion à la macula; d) un état stationnaire ou évoluant très lentement; e) un élargissement de la tache aveugle et une baisse de l'acuité visuelle.On n'a trouvé dans la littérature que 2 rapports concernant des cas similaires.

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This work was supported in part by Training Grant 5-J01-NB-5379.     

Fine structure of intercellular junctions and blood vessels in medulloblastomas

Summary Six medulloblastomas were studied by electron microscopy. Two features were found which seem to be constant and essential characteristics of medulloblastoma. First, cell junctions are abundant between tumor cells. These are mostly desmosome-like but other, closer junctions, were also seen. Second, the capillary endothelia contain frequent tubular bodies and other inclusions which may be related to them.