The medical advancements we see today are the results of years of progress and research. What if we tell you that some of these advancements or research date back to nearly 5,300 years ago? Archaeologists discovered a 5,300-year-old skull in a Spanish tomb. Several cut marks are present in the skull surrounding the left ear canal. It thereby implies that the first ear surgery may certainly have taken place to treat pain.
The skull pertains to an elderly lady. Archaeologists found it in 2018 alongside other human remains from over 100 people in the Dolmen of El Pendón in Reinoso, Spain. It is a vast single-chamber, multi-phase tomb dating from the late Neolithic era. However, the skull revealed two perforations on both sides of the head near the mastoid bones, implying that the surgery sought to alleviate rising pressure in the ear canal. Moreover, there were cuts on the skull’s temporal bone.
The procedure is similar to the ones today
According to the researchers, it is uncertain if the surgeries were concurrent or separate. However, there was unusual bone growth around the location which exhibits that the woman endured both procedures.
“Given the chronology of this dolmen, this find would be the earliest surgical ear intervention in the history of mankind,” the researchers said in their report.
“This evidence point to a mastoidectomy. A surgical procedure was possibly performed to relieve the pain. This prehistoric individual may have suffered as a result of otitis media and mastoiditis,” the researchers concluded.
Rojo-Guerra rationalized the finding of a flint blade in the tomb with proof of having sliced bone. It was warmed up numerous times at temperatures ranging from 300 to 350 degrees. Thus, leading them to believe it was certainly in use as a medical instrument for the surgery. Doctors at the University Hospital of the University of Valladolid confirmed that the procedure would certainly have been very similar to surgical interventions that are still available today to eliminate middle ear infections.