Markets and Mycobacteria – A Comprehensive Analysis of the Infuence of Urbanization on Leprosy and Tuberculosis Prevalence in Denmark (AD 1200–1536)

Tuberculosis (TB)Tuberculosis (TB) and leprosyLeprosy are two of the consequential maladies of urbanization that can be studiedStudied in archaeological samples through systematically examined skeletal indicators and using probabilistic statistical procedures. To test whether TB Tuberculosis (TB) and leprosyLeprosy disease Diseases prevalencePrevalence were influenced by growing trends of urbanization in medievalMedieval DenmarkDenmark, skeletons from thirteen cemetery Cemeteries samples (n = 1546) were examined and characterized into varying urban levels based on historic and archaeological sources. PrevalencePrevalence was estimatedEstimated using a probabilistic approach based on sensitivitySensitivity and specificitySpecificity measures of lesionsLesions associated with TB Tuberculosis (TB) and leprosyLeprosy. The estimatedEstimated TB Tuberculosis (TB) prevalencePrevalence was significantlySignificantly higherHigher than that of leprosyLeprosy across all sites and urban levels, although for both TB Tuberculosis (TB) and leprosyLeprosy, ruralRural and transitionalTransitional sites (urban 1) had significantlySignificantly higherHigher disease Diseases prevalencePrevalence. Among individual sites, leprosyLeprosy was most common in ruralRural Sct. Alberts (28%), SejetSejet (18%), and transitionalTransitional urban Ole WormsgadeOle Wormsgade (22%) with other sites ranging from 0% to 6%. For TB Tuberculosis (TB) , sites with the highest prevalencePrevalence were found in ruralRural Sct. Alberts (100%) and urban Sct. Drotten (73%) with the remainingRemaining sites ranging from 7% to 59%. The findings support the hypothesis that individuals with visible facial lesionsLesions were routinely isolated and buried in urban leprosariaLeprosaria, thus contributing to the lower prevalencePrevalence of the disease Diseases in parish Parishes cemeteriesCemeteries in towns. Comparatively higherHigher TB Tuberculosis (TB) prevalencePrevalence may reflect increased contact Contacts through widening economic networksEconomic networks between urban and ruralRural communitiesCommunities.