Article ID: 121017
Entheseal changes (ECs) have been widely recorded using visual methods, but size and shape affect stress distribution which cannot be quantified visually. The aim of this paper is to present a simple method for quantifying size and shape by applying parameters to quantify shape and to highlight preliminary results indicating that this method provides useful data. Hypotheses tested were: common extensor origin size correlates with humerus size; ECs change the size and shape of entheses; surface area is increased in those entheses with bony proliferation. The common extensor origins of 43 male skeletons from medieval York were recorded. The entheses were recorded visually for any deviation from a smooth surface. The chord was measured using sliding calipers and the shape of the entheses recorded using a profile gauge and quantified using parameters (e.g. the standard deviation of the surface from a mean line) which assess the relationship of the surface to a flat surface. To test replicability, disarticulated humeri were also recorded (inter-observer error n