Estimation of stature from length of sternum in adult females of North East Madhya Pradesh - An autopsy based study

Abstract

Determination of stature is an important step to complete the biological profile of an individual to establish identity particularly in partially skeletonized, dismembered, mutilated, and highly decomposed bodies. The present descriptive observational study was conducted on 50 female cadavers of age more than 25 years brought for medicolegal autopsy in this tertiary care center located in north east Madhya Pradesh. The aim of the present study was to find out a correlation between the lengths of different parts of fresh sternums and stature and derive a simple linear regression equation for stature estimation from the length of the sternum. Simple linear regression formulae were derived by correlating stature with the length of manubrium, length of mesosternum, and the combined length of manubrium and mesosternum. We observed a moderately positive correlation between stature and length of manubrium (R=0.167) and the combined length of manubrium and mesosternum (R=0.207). Amongst all parameters taken into consideration in the present study, stature can be most reliably predicted by the regression equation which is derived from the correlation between stature and the combined length of the manubrium and mesosternum [standard error of estimate (SEE) - 5.85]. Due to lesser values of correlation coefficient and higher SEE, lengths of different parts of the sternum are less reliable in predicting stature than lengths of long bones, hand length, and foot length. The findings of the present study will be useful for rapid estimation of stature in relatively fresh but mutilated bodies or badly decomposed bodies only when long bones are not available or are partially broken and fragmented.