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johnn48 t1_j7xbx7h wrote

Reply to comment by Clio90808 in Skeleton reveals lifestyle of medieval woman - BBC News by Mundane_Practice1

It would definitely call into question that it was brought to Europe by Columbus and his crews. I had always been told that syphilis was a New World disease. It’s sounding like it was more a case of being endemic and not recognized.

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Billy1121 t1_j7xk01c wrote

They often hypothesized that it was related to yaws, another new world spirochete. But syphilis could have been one of those diseases lumped in with leprosy and such. Poorly understood

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rbk12spb t1_j7zy84s wrote

I think that was debunked. Syphilis is actually present in all regions, and previously spread throughout eurasia.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3956094/#:~:text=Throughout%20the%20centuries%2C%20syphilis%20has,prevention%20programs%20control%20the%20disease.

I learned a bit reading here. It was more mild according to that write-up, but evolved to become more brutal. Interesting point, it mentions that in Europe it was mistaken for leprosy, so she may have decided to be sealed in due to the similarities in her condition. Hard to say.

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