Measurement Of Gonial Angle And Mental Foramen For Prediction of Gender Dimorphism In An Eastern Indian Population Sample - A Radiographic Cross-sectional Study

Abstract

Introduction: In gender determination, facial skeletal components play a major role in forensic and anthropological fields. Skull is considered second best, after pelvis, in determination of sex. Mandible is the strongest bone in the body and most dimorphic bone of the skull that often recovered intact. Aims: The purpose of the present study was to measure, compare and evaluate the mandibular parameters gonial angle and relative position of the mental foramen as sex predictors in an Eastern Indian population. Material and methods: Panoramic radiographs and lateral cephalograms of the sampled patients were analysed for relative position of mental foramen and gonial angle respectively. This cross-sectionalretrospective study was carried out utilizing radiographs of 100 patients (58 females and 42males) between age 18-44 years. A total of 5 measurements were evaluated for sex differences and the results were subjected to statistical analysis. Results: Our study found that females showed statistically significant higher gonial angle values than males whereas the values of linear measurements of mental foramen were found to be higher in males than females. Conclusion: The assessment of mandibular morphology through radiographic measurements suggest that gonial angle and mental foramen parameters exhibit significant gender dimorphism and it is a reliable indicator in estimating an individual’s gender when comparing to a known population standard.