admin Trepanation is well documented in South America, Africa, Europe and Asia. Some of the earliest evidence of this type of cranial surgery is thought to have been performed in what is now Sudan 7,000 years ago.
Archaeological excavations at Tel Megiddo, Israel, have unearthed evidence of a particular type of cranial surgery performed about 3,500 years ago. According to a research paper published in the journal PLoS ONE, this is the oldest example of the species found in the region and may be one of the oldest cases of leprosy in the world.
Ancient civilizations around the world are known to have practiced cranial drilling for thousands of years. In this medical procedure, a hole is made in the skull. Trepanation is well documented in South America, Africa, Europe and Asia. Some of the earliest evidence of this type of cranial surgery is believed to have been performed in what is now Sudan 7,000 years ago.
Recent excavations at the ancient city of Megiddo provide new evidence that the origins of certain types of drilling go back at least to the late Bronze Age. Scientists have examined the bodies of two upper-class men who died around the 15th century BC. lived in Megiddo. and discovered that one of them had undergone some sort of cranial surgery shortly before his death.
A DNA test revealed that they were related and brothers. Researchers estimate that people lived between 1550 and 1550 BC, based on archaeological studies. And in 1450 BC he suffered from various chronic diseases, and one of his brothers underwent an ancient brain operation shortly before his death. And while such operations are performed all over the world, there is little evidence of perforation in the Middle East.
Buried under the floor of their prosperous Bronze City family home, the brothers were probably of higher social status, which allowed them access to medicines not available to the less fortunate. They suffered from various ailments, but their social status enabled them to receive treatment that they otherwise would not have received. However, despite their wealth, even the most advanced medicine of the time could not help them. One brother died in his late teens or early 20s, according to initial research, and was buried one to three years earlier than the other. Another brother died in a failed operation and is said to have died between the ages of 21 and 23. Eventually the younger brother was exhumed and the two were buried together.
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Both brothers suffered from multiple ailments, as explained by the Smithsonian Institution. For example, their skeletons show signs of birth defects. A brother who underwent cranial surgery suffered from an illness during childhood that prevented the bones from healing properly. In addition, scientists say the bones of the two brothers show signs of infectious lesions of the disease, most likely leprosy. Many injuries on the skeleton suggest that both brothers were probably alive
