Sujatha 2017
Sujatha 2017
Sujatha 2017
Contributors: Abstract
1Professor and Head, 2 Post Forensic radiology has a lot of scope in human identification, it acts as vital evidence
Graduate 3Senior Professor, for antemortem and postmortem records and assists in identifying the person, age,
4,5Assistant Professor , Department
gender, race, etc. This paper reviews the different radiological techniques using
of Oral Medicine and Radiology,
Faculty of Dental Sciences, M.S. Cone beam computerized tomography (CBCT) and advances available for
Ramaiah University of Applied successful identification of the deceased.
Sciences, Bengaluru-560054
Keywords: Forensic Odontology, Cone Beam CT, Age Estimation, Sex
Determination, Pre and Post Mortem Data
Introduction
Forensic science deals with the identification of review we have discussed various radiological
the dead which depend largely on the techniques and new developments available for
preservation of soft-tissue components of the successful identification of the dead, cause of
body and cannot be used if the remains are burnt, death, for medico legal purposes and also
decomposed, mutilated, and destroyed. In the anthropological research.
human body, teeth and facial bones are resilient
and withstand the decompositional/destructional Age estimation of living and deceased individuals
forces well even under extreme forces and/or is imperious in both forensic and clinical work.
temperature variations.1 Teeth are particularly There is increase in skeletons and unidentified
useful in determining the gender where there is dead bodies globally due to instances such as fire,
nothing to suggest the individual's identity.2 As air crash, natural calamities, building collapse,
radiographs are able to capture characteristic railway accidents or manmade incidences like
anatomical features, they can be auxiliary tool in murder, bomb blasts or mass firing etc., hence it
identification of the dead and in solving medico- is essential to determine the identity of the dead
legal cases. Radiographic identification person for legal, criminal and ethical
technique is efficient, comparatively easy, perspectives.3 In 1950, Gustafson was first to
records can be obtained in both living and dead, introduce a scientific method for age estimation
and they are economical than DNA technology. using six age-related changes in tooth structure,
Radiographs of skull and teeth have been mostly such as secondary dentine formation, periodontal
used for forensic identification as these structures recession, attrition, apical translucency,
are the strongest and highly resistant to trauma cementum apposition and external root
and decomposition. With the advent of CBCT, resorption3,4. Matsikidis et al. described that the
which shows greater precision to diagnose trauma characteristics of Gustafson method (except
and pathologies of the cranium, the number of apical translucency) using dental radiographs.
image requests by forensic professionals has Subsequently, numerous studies 3,5, 6, 7 have been
increased, making possible the use of this conducted with different dental radiographic
technique to support human identification by techniques employing the characteristics studied
comparing images of significant anatomical by Gustafson to aid in age determination.
structures of the cranium. So, in the present
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sex predictability of FM dimensions, the foramen identification using cone beam computerized
measurements can be used to supplement other tomography and concluded that frontal sinus can
sexing evidence available, so as to precisely be accurate tool for gender determination.
ascertain the sex of the skeleton. Significant differences were observed in the
frontal sinus measurements between males and
females supporting the dimorphic features of
frontal sinus in humans with 67.59% accuracy
rate. Sai Kiran et al.29 Therefore frontal sinus
index can be used as a reliable tool in sex
determination.
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the contradictory result’s, in study done by Methodology and Present Status. Open
Demirel O et al .35 Dent J [Internet]. 2015;9:250–6.
3. Koh KK, Tan JS, Nambiar P, Ibrahim N,
3. Individual Identification Mutalik S, Khan Asif M. Age estimation
from structural changes of teeth and
3.1 Facial Reconstruction buccal alveolar bone level. J Forensic
Forensic cranio-facial reconstruction is a Leg Med [Internet]. 2017;48:15–21.
combination of scientific standards and artistic 4. Nishant Singh, Neeraj Grover, Navin
skill to rebuild a face onto a skull to reconstruct Puri,Sanjeet Singh and SA. Age
the antemortem appearance of the deceased estimation from physiological changes of
individual so as to identify and distinguish the teeth: A reliable age marker. J Forensic
decedent. It is also known as ‘‘forensic facial Dent Sci. 2014;6(2):113–121.
approximation’’ (FFR). 6 36 When other forensic 5. Thevissen PW, Fieuws S, Willems G.
approaches are not conceivable, FFR might be Human dental age estimation using third
very useful investigations.37 38Three dimensional molar developmental stages: Does a
computerized programmes can be effective and Bayesian approach outperform
have demonstrated good levels of accuracy for regression models to discriminate
facial reconstruction Lee et al 39. between juveniles and adults. Int J Legal
Med. 2010;124(1):35–42.
Conclusion 6. Jawaid M, Iqubal A, Shukla AK, Khan
M, Farhat B. the Role of Cbct in Forensic
CBCT is useful in forensic contexts, offering Dentistry: a Review. Int J Adv Case
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imaging, relatively low cost, portability, and Kvaal SI, Nurul F, Kanagasingam S,
simplicity. 3D reconstruction, bite-mark analysis, Franklin D, et al. Application of the
age estimation, person identification and Kvaal method for adult dental age
anthropological assessment using CBCT have estimation using Cone Beam Computed
shown promising results. CBCT imaging can Tomography (CBCT). J Forensic Leg
provide the much-needed 3D perspective in Med [Internet]. 2016;44:178–82.
certain cases that require more information that is 8. Rai A, Acharya A, Naikmasur V. Age
beyond the scope of the traditional methods. estimation by pulp-to-tooth area ratio
There is a need for forensic odontologists to using cone-beam computed tomography:
understand the role and scope of this imaging A preliminary analysis. J Forensic Dent
modality in the forensic practice. In future, CBCT Sci [Internet]. 2016;8(3):150.
will be a great tool and asset to the practice of 9. Biuki N, Razi T, Faramarzi M.
forensic odontology. Relationship between pulp-tooth volume
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