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Sex prediction by metric and non-metric analysis of the hard palate and the pyriform aperture
Affiliations- Research Centre of Applied Morphology, Universidad de La Frontera, Temuco, Chile
- Centre of Excellence in Morphological and Surgical Sciences, Universidad de La Frontera, Temuco, Chile
- Dental School, Universidad de La Frontera, Temuco, Chile
- Master Programme in Dentistry, Faculty of Dentistry, Universidad de La Frontera, Temuco, Chile
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Abstract
Background: Analysis of the bones and bone fragments of the cranium may be a useful tool for sex diagnosis in the identification of human remains which have been exposed to adverse conditions. The object of the present study was to evaluate sex prediction through metric and non-metric analysis of the hard palate (HP) and the pyriform aperture (PA), using macerated skulls of adult individuals.
Materials and methods: We analysed 312 dry skulls of adult individuals of both sexes, studying the metric and non-metric characteristics of the HP and PA. The accuracy, sensitivity, specificity and positive and negative predictive values were evaluated. A binary logistic regression and a linear regression were performed. The receiver operating characteristic curve was constructed to analyse the perfor- mance of sex diagnosis. Measurements of the HP and the PA were analysed by ANOVA and Tukey’s test. The SPSS v. 20.0 software was used, with a significance threshold of 5%.
Results: The shape of the PA presented 61.9% accuracy, 54.4% sensitivity and 65.7% specificity. The shape of the HP presented 51.5% accuracy, 65.6% sen- sitivity and 44.7% specificity. Only the height of the PA functioned as a good predictor of sex.
Conclusions: The height of the PA produced good diagnostic performance (area under curve = 0.764). The height of the PA was the most reliable indicator for sex prediction, and could be used by forensic scientists to identify sex.
Abstract
Background: Analysis of the bones and bone fragments of the cranium may be a useful tool for sex diagnosis in the identification of human remains which have been exposed to adverse conditions. The object of the present study was to evaluate sex prediction through metric and non-metric analysis of the hard palate (HP) and the pyriform aperture (PA), using macerated skulls of adult individuals.
Materials and methods: We analysed 312 dry skulls of adult individuals of both sexes, studying the metric and non-metric characteristics of the HP and PA. The accuracy, sensitivity, specificity and positive and negative predictive values were evaluated. A binary logistic regression and a linear regression were performed. The receiver operating characteristic curve was constructed to analyse the perfor- mance of sex diagnosis. Measurements of the HP and the PA were analysed by ANOVA and Tukey’s test. The SPSS v. 20.0 software was used, with a significance threshold of 5%.
Results: The shape of the PA presented 61.9% accuracy, 54.4% sensitivity and 65.7% specificity. The shape of the HP presented 51.5% accuracy, 65.6% sen- sitivity and 44.7% specificity. Only the height of the PA functioned as a good predictor of sex.
Conclusions: The height of the PA produced good diagnostic performance (area under curve = 0.764). The height of the PA was the most reliable indicator for sex prediction, and could be used by forensic scientists to identify sex.
Keywords
pyriform aperture; hard palate; sex prediction
About this articleTitle
Sex prediction by metric and non-metric analysis of the hard palate and the pyriform aperture
Journal
Issue
Article type
Original article
Pages
137-144
Published online
2018-11-20
Page views
2539
Article views/downloads
2426
DOI
Pubmed
Bibliographic record
Folia Morphol 2019;78(1):137-144.
Keywords
pyriform aperture
hard palate
sex prediction
Authors
N. Alves
N. F. Deana
F. Ceballos
P. Hernandez
J. Gonzalez
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