Abstract
Forensic physical anthropometry allows the determination of animal species and estimates sex, ancestry, age and height. Aim: To analyze the effectiveness of a cranioscopic/ morphological evaluation for sex estimation with a sample of the Brazilian mixed-race population by conducting a qualitative visual assessment without prior knowledge of sex. Methods: This is a blind cross-sectional study that evaluated 30 cranial characteristics of 192 skulls with mandible, 108 male and 84 female individuals, aged 22 to 97 years, from the Osteological and Tomographic Biobank. The qualitative characteristics were classified and compared to the actual sex information of the Biobank database. The statistical analysis was used to calculate de Cohen’s kappa coefficient, total percentage of agreement, sensitivity and specificity of visual sex classification. Results: Of the 30 cranial variables analyzed, 15 presented moderate degree of agreement, achieving value of Kappa test between 0.41–0.60: Glabella (Gl), Angle and lines (At), Mental eminence (Em), Mandible size (Tm), Cranial base (Bc), Mouth depth (Pb), Nasal aperture (Anl), Supraorbital region (Rs), Orbits (Orb), Mastoid processes (Pm), Alveolar arches (Aa), Zygomatic arch (Az), Orbital edge (Bo), Supraorbital protuberances (Pts), and Supramastoid crests and rugosity (Crsm). The Facial physiognomy (Ff) presented substantial reliability (0.61-0.80) with 89.8% sensitivity for male sex and 70.2% specificity. Conclusions: Cranial morphological characteristics present sexual dimorphism; however, in this study only 15 variables showed moderate degree of agreement and can be used in sex estimation. Only one variable (Ff) 81.2% total agreement with substantial reliability. Quantitative methods can be associated for safe sex estimation.
Highlights
In an anthropological examination for forensic purposes, the determination of sex, species, ethnic group and estimated age and height are essential as such information help build an individual’s biological profile[1,2] and subsequent identification.Musilová et al.[2] (2016) e Durić et al.[3] (2005) portrayed that the pelvis is the structure of the human skeleton that presents the highest degree of sexual dimorphism, being the most reliable bone for sex estimation
Due to the sample consisted of skulls aged older than 22 years, the authors performed the skull concordance tests without separating them by age
In our study, using a balanced sample, 30 cranial characteristics were analysed, only 15 variables achieved moderate agreement and one substantial agreement, but according to Cicchetti and Feinstein[17] (1990) a low kappa can occur at a high agreement
Summary
In an anthropological examination for forensic purposes, the determination of sex, species, ethnic group and estimated age and height are essential as such information help build an individual’s biological profile[1,2] and subsequent identification. Musilová et al.[2] (2016) e Durić et al.[3] (2005) portrayed that the pelvis is the structure of the human skeleton that presents the highest degree of sexual dimorphism, being the most reliable bone for sex estimation. In situations where the skeleton is not complete[4] or when the pelvis is not fully recovered, sex estimation can be achieved by performing a cranial analysis. As mentioned by Spradley and Jantz[4] (2011), the skull has a high correct classification of sex, of 90-91%. An anthropologist may use quantitative (metric) and/or qualitative (non-metric) methods[2,5,6]
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