Does anyone know of human skeletal disarticulation studies that found the shoulder joint to be labile, not persistent?
A little more context for this question: I placed two donated bodies in different positions: one in 'flexed upright seated' position, and one in 'flexed dorsal' position. Both were positioned in shallow oval-shaped open pits, and i observed both through decomposition and disarticulation. I noticed that the connection between the clavicle and scapula (acromioclavicular) disconnected relatively early in the sequence. Considering the nature of the ligament involved, I wasn't surprised about this. What surprised me though is that in one of the two cases (the dorsal one) the glenohumeral joint disconnected very early in the sequence: at the same time as the C1-C2 connection, and before the acromioclavicular. I was wondering whether body position could be the only factor involved in this difference? I also recently saw two archaeological cases with disarticulation of the glenohumeral and in the cervical vertebrae, while the rest of the skeleton was in anatomical position (except for the carpals, metacarpals and phalanges, which were jumbled in the abdomen). Any ideas are welcome!
Just throwing some ideas around... Could it be that that individual had a relatively weaker gleno-humeral joint? For instance, let's say he/she had a propensity for shoulder dislocations, luxation... Could this weaken the articulation, in terms of its connective tissues, thus making it more prone to early decomposition?
Hello ! the shoulder is unstable itself because is not a ball in the socket articulation like the hip, it only mantains stability because the strong ligaments capsule and muscles ! its not different the acromioclavicular joint for the same reason. You cannot make conclutions about two cases... but it is a good research to follow. keep on doing
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