Triassic Sauropodomorph Dinosaur Suffered from Severe Bone Tissue Infection
A ram of paleontologists from the University of Zurich reports that a chronic case of osteomyelitis (bone tissue infection) Plateosaurus trossingensisOne of the first dinosaurs discovered and the most famous of the late Triassic of Europe.
Diagram of Plateosaurus trossingensis Skeleton as part of the Teoplati exhibition at the Natural History Museum from the University of Zurich. Image credit: Dupuis and al., DOI: 10.1186 / S13358-025-00368-3.
Plateosaurus trossingensis lived in Europe during the end of the time of the Triassic, about 220 million years ago.
The old animal was almost 8 m (26 feet) long and walked on its two posterior limbs.
In new research, the University of Zurich Jordan Bestwick and his colleagues have examined a skeleton of Plateosaurus trossingensis FRICK KLETTGAU training in Switzerland.
They found evidence of severe osteomyelitis in the right shoulder of the dinosaur and the upper arm.
“Osteomyelitis affects many living animals, including mammals such as humans, as well as birds and reptiles,” said Dr. Bestwick.
“This disease is known for affecting several different groups of dinosaurs, including sauropods, we therefore had access to a range of specimens to compare our Plate with.”
“The bones affected by the shoulder and the top of the arm have unusually rough internal and external textures, altered shapes and are even merged – symptoms which are largely typical of osteomyelitis.”
According to the researchers, their discovery is fascinating not only because, at around 220 million years old, it is the case of the oldest osteomyelitis reported in a dinosaur, but the size of the infected area was exceptionally important.
“Previous studies on osteomyelitis in dinosaurs report localized infection areas, such as toes of the toes or a few adjacent bones in the spine,” said Dr. Bestwick.
“Having an entire infected shoulder and an upper arm is very unusual.”
“Although we do not know what initially caused the infection, the animal probably suffered from this disease for a substantial part of its life, which makes the possible its right arm unnecessary.”
The discovery is reported in an article published in the Swiss Paleontology Journal.
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Dupuis SFJ and al. 2025. Osteology and histology of a Plateosaurus trossingensis (Dinosauria: Sauropodomorpha) from the Superior Triassic of Switzerland with an advanced chronic pathology. Switzerland J Palaeontol 144, 27; DOI: 10.1186 / S13358-025-00368-3
