Identifying sialoliths through SEM technology
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Emilio González-Reimers1, Marcos Frías-García2, Matilde Arnay-de-la-Rosa3
1Dpt. de Medicina Interna, Hospital Universitario de Canarias, 38320, Universidad de La Laguna, La Laguna, Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain.
Objective:
To define SEM characteristics that may aid identification of sialoliths.
Materials:
Two sialoliths from modern patients affected by sialadenitis.
Methods:
Samples were coated with silver and subjected to scanning electron microscopy using an energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy detector. Samples were then sectioned to permit study of the internal structure.
Results:
Sialoliths show an external smooth surface with no distinctive features. Internal structures consist of a distinctive aggregate of coarse granules of different sizes surrounded by a lamellar coat. Elemental composition consists of carbon, phosphate, calcium and oxygen, with traces of magnesium. The proportion of these elements differs between the core and the surface.
Conclusion:
Although elemental composition is not specific, SEM analyses of sialoliths greatly differ from those of sesamoid bones, gallstones and nephroliths. Therefore, SEM analysis constitutes a useful tool for the precise identification of small calcified structures recovered during archaeological excavations.
Significance:
Precise identification of calcified structures may provide information about nutritional and/or pathological aspects of past individuals.
Limitations:
Sialoliths are less common than other types of calcifications, and only two cases were analyzed in this study.
Future Prospects:
SEM technology should be applied to identify the etiology of all minute calcified remains recovered during archaeological excavations of burial sites.
