Morphological appearance of muscle attachment sites on lower limbs: Horse riders versus agricultural population

The present study analysed macromorphological characteristics of the muscle attachment sites of lower limbs, hypothesising that everyday physical activities influence the macromorphology of the bone at the entheses. Our specific goals were to investigate how different habitual activities influence the morphology of the muscle attachment sites of lower limbs in two different medieval populations from Serbia: agricultural versus horse-riding populations. The skeletal material used in this study comprised two different populations: a Medieval Avarian population of horse riders from two necropolises (Pionirska Ulica and Cik, in Becej) and an agricultural population represented by two sites-Medieval Vinca near Belgrade and Sirmium (Sremska Mitrovica), Site No. 85. The macromorphological analysis of the entheseal changes (ECs) encompassed 10 entheses of the lower limbs. Morphological appearance of entheses was evaluated using the visual reference system proposed by Villotte. The results revealed an age dependence in one muscle of the lower limbs (Musculus gluteus maximus) among the agricultural population, suggested by more pronounced ECs in the older age categories. Among the Avarian population, more pronounced EC scores were recorded in the older age groups for the attachment site of Musculus soleus, while in the case of the iliopsoas muscle, ECs were more common in younger ages. The results revealed more pronounced EC scores in males in both populations. Between the riders and agricultural populations, results indicated that only the adductor muscles which are specific for horse riders were singled out, showing a more pronounced ECs in the horse riders' population. Results of our study showed that the level of physical activity mostly increased with age. In both investigated populations, EC scores were more pronounced in males compared with females. Moreover, we noted that the evaluation of entheses of adductor muscles could provide the most reliable criteria for the identification of riders among the general population