Sex Prediction Based on Mesiodistal Width Data in the Portuguese Population

João Albernaz Neves,Luís Proença,Ana Sintra Delgado,Nathalie Antunes-Ferreira,José João Mendes,Alexandre Quintas,João Botelho,Vanessa Machado

doi:10.3390/app10124156

João Albernaz Neves, Luís Proença + Show 6 more

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https://doi.org/10.3390/app10124156

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Abstract

Accurate sex prediction is a key step in creating a postmortem forensic profile as it excludes approximately half the population. It is our goal to develop a predictive model to establish sex through teeth mesiodistal widths in a Portuguese population. The pretreatment dental casts of 168 of Portuguese orthodontics subjects (59 males and 109 females) were included. Mesiodistal widths from right first molar to left first molar were measured on each pretreatment cast to the nearest 0.01 mm using a digital caliper. Overall, the mesiodistal widths of the upper and lower canines, premolars, and molars were found to be significantly different between females and males. Conversely, no significant differences between sexes were identified for incisors. A multivariate logistic regression model for sex prediction was developed and the teeth included in the final reduced model being the upper left canine (2.3), the lower right lateral incisor (4.2) and the lower right canine (4.3). There is a prevalence of sexual dimorphism in all teeth except the incisors. The canines present the most noticeable difference between sexes. The presented sex determination predictive model exhibits an overall correct classification of 75%, outperforming all available models for this purpose and therefore is a potential tool for forensic analysis in this population.

Highlights

Forensic dentistry emerges as a part of forensic medicine and dental anthropology
Given the lack of robust sex identification models for the Portuguese population, we aimed to use cast models of a previously studied sample (Machado et al, 2018) [16] to develop a new sex prediction model based on mesiodistal width measures
The mean mesiodistal widths of upper and lower canines, premolars, and molars were found to be significantly different between females and males

Summary

Introduction

Forensic dentistry emerges as a part of forensic medicine and dental anthropology. This is the branch of dentistry that focuses on the issues of identifying human remains by direct comparison, bite mark identification, clinical malpractice, and forensic dental profiling, such as sex and age estimation, in cases of unknown human remains, in order to facilitate their subsequent identification [1,2].Appl. Forensic dentistry emerges as a part of forensic medicine and dental anthropology. This is the branch of dentistry that focuses on the issues of identifying human remains by direct comparison, bite mark identification, clinical malpractice, and forensic dental profiling, such as sex and age estimation, in cases of unknown human remains, in order to facilitate their subsequent identification [1,2]. There may be some setbacks that prevent dental eruption of teeth useful for forensic identification [7,8,9,10]

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