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INTRODUCTION: Gender determination of deceased individuals may become necessary in scenarios involving sudden and unforeseen fatalities like explosions, fires, transportation accidents, or instances of mutilation or decomposition, which frequently require medicolegal expertise. Forensic radiology is instrumental in identifying gender. The shape of the frontal sinus is considered distinct for every person, differing even among identical twins, much like individual fingerprints and establishing personal identity. AIMS AND OBJECTIVES: This study was designed to validate and determine gender identification by evaluating frontal sinus measurements using digital posteroanterior cephalograms with reference to Yoshino's classification and to determine gender based on measurements of frontal sinus size, bilateral asymmetry, the outline of the upper border of the frontal sinus, partial septa, and supraorbital cells of the frontal sinus. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 300 digital posteroanterior cephalograms (150 males and 150 females) of age groups ranging from 18 to 30 years were collected from the records of the Department of Oral Medicine and Radiology, Panineeya Institute of Dental Sciences & Research Centre, Hyderabad. The parameters that were assessed in a digital radiograph are Yoshino's frontal sinus pattern of the individual, which includes frontal sinus size, bilateral asymmetry, superiority of the side, outline of the upper border, partial septa, and supraorbital cells. The measurements were taken, tabulated, and compared with the standard values of the gender measurement. The values were subjected to statistical analysis. RESULTS: Results showed a statistically significant difference in the mean height (p=0.000), width (p=0.000), area (p=0.000), partial septa (p=0.002), and outline of the upper border on the right side (p=0.011) of the frontal sinus for both males and females. The mean values for length, width, and area of the frontal sinus were higher in males than females. No statistical difference is found on the outline of the upper border on the left side, superiority of the side, and supraorbital cells. The application of discriminative analysis to the data accurately identified gender in 65.3% of the cases. CONCLUSION: Thus, from the above study, the forensic application of frontal sinus morphology can be recommended as an adjunctive tool for gender determination.
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AIM: Studies have been done in diversified population, demonstrating the uniqueness of frontal sinus; data related to the Indian population are less. Thus, the present study was aimed to determine the frontal sinus measurement and to assess its forensic application in the Indian population. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 400 individuals with Indian origin (21-30 years) were included in the study. The digitized posteroanterior skull radiographs were obtained and was transferred to Adobe® CS4 extended to measure the dimensions of frontal sinus and orbit for 12 parameters. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS: A descriptive statistical analysis was performed. RESULTS: The descriptive statistics showed the presence of bilateral frontal sinus in 87.7% and bilateral absence in 8.0% of the individuals and the absence of left and right frontal sinus in 3.3% and 1%, respectively. Maximum population showed high asymmetry index (64.7%); the right side frontal sinus (height, 59.3% and width, 40.8%) was superior to the left side in both males and females. The partial septa among the Indian population were absent for maximum population (55.2%), and supraorbital cells of the frontal sinuses were present on both sides among the Indian population. CONCLUSION: The observation of the present study suggests that the frontal sinus is highly asymmetrical and unique to the individual and hence can be effectively used in personal identification method in forensic anthropology.
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BACKGROUND: Morphological variations of the orbital aperture measurements may be used in forensic medicine as a parameter for determining sexual and ethnic identity of an individual. AIM AND OBJECTIVE: The aim and objective of this study was to evaluate the orbital aperture dimensions in Indian individuals and verify their relationship with gender. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A retrospective study was conducted using digital posteroanterior view radiographs of 50 males and 51 females, which were taken using NEWTOM GIANO-CEFLA SC machine (81 kVp, 10 mA, and 6.6 s). The orbital aperture measurements were carried out using NEWTOM software NNT version 5.5. The maximum width and height of the orbits and the inter-orbital distance were measured. The obtained data were subjected to t-test and discriminant function analysis. RESULTS: In the t-test, significant differences in orbital width and inter-orbital distance were obtained between the genders. On subjecting the data to discriminant function analysis, result was obtained with 86.1% accuracy rate in gender determination. CONCLUSION: If the discriminant score is >1.0365, the skull is likely to be of a male, and if it is <1.0365, it is likely to be of a female. Therefore, orbital aperture measurements can be used for gender determination in human identification.
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Introduction: Plain radiographs are still routinely used for diagnosis in dentistry. They allow the assessmentof anatomical structures and their variations, and the detection of abnormalities in the region assessed. Theaim of this research was to determine the width and height distances of the frontal sinus on posteroanteriorskull view of Brazilian subjects. Materials and methods: The sample was composed of 158 posteroanteriorfacial radiographs (Caldwell projection). It was measured the height and width of the frontal sinus, both sides,under a standardized protocol, using rules and a viewer box. The relationship between frontal sinus size andside of the face, and size and age were evaluated. Results: Thirteen radiographs were excluded (six of unilateralfrontal sinus, two agenesies, and five showing totally individualized chambers). The final sample studied was of145 subjects. The mean values obtained were a 68 mm for latero-lateral and 39 mm for superoinferior distances.In 39.3% cases both sides were approximately equal or had the left chamber larger than the right one. Therewas a significant correlation between width and height of frontal sinus (Spearman coefficient), however therewas no significant difference among the age groups studied (Kruskal-Wallis, p > 0,05). Conclusion: There is agreat anatomical variety of frontal sinus in this population. The left cavity of frontal sinus is larger or equal tothe right one and the age group differences was not significant regarding the size of the frontal sinus.