Software Assisted Profiling of Dentition in Human Identification

Abstract

Forensic odontology is the integral part of forensic science that utilizes unique characteristics of human dentition. Dental remains withstand degradation bet­ter than other human remains. This study was aimed to determine the human identity by using the various predetermined parameters of dental morphology us­ing their digital smile photographs and confirming by means of Adobe Photoshop CC software. The study also aimed to compare and identify the most used pa­rameter of the dental morphology in the human iden­tification process. This retrospective study was conducted in the Department of Oral & Maxillofacial Pathology, Mi­ crobiology and Forensic Odontology, I.T.S Dental College Hospital & Research Centre, Greater Noida, UP, India. A sample of 50 subjects (25 males and 25 females) aged between 20 and 40 years were included in the study. Two sequential techniques were followed. Dental casts and pictures were analyzed by 3 blind observers by comparison of dental traits and then were confirmed by superimposition using Adobe Photoshop CC. Positive identification was achieved by application of the 2 techniques. ICC Multiple Raters and ICC Two Raters were applied to analyze the stratum of agreement between the observers. By analyzing the parameters specified by three blind observers, the combination of Central and Lateral Incisor morphology was the most used parameter in the identification process. When the records are unavailable, dental comparison of postmortem findings with antemortem photographs of people displaying uncommon dental features visible in smiles taken from photographs may increase the probability of identification. Keywords: Forensic Science, Forensic Odontology, Smile, Photograph, Antemortem, Postmortem.