Craniometric diagnosis of skeletal and somatotype mass

The paper presents diagnostic models for evaluation of ash mass (bone fragments, bone ashes), sex, length and mass of the burned body. Individual data by M. Warren and W. Maples (1997) on 85 adult Americans were used. On the basis of a canonical discriminant analysis and multiple linear regression equations the authors have developed models for diagnosis of ash residue mass as well as the burned body's sex, body length and mass. The above models can be used directly on the place of the criminal body cremation. They do not require determination of anatomic appurtenance of bone fragments and their osteometric examination.     

Determining the human origin of fragments of burnt bone: a comparative study of histological, immunological and DNA techniques.

In situations where badly burnt fragments of bone are found, identification of their human or non-human origin may be impossible by gross morphology alone and other techniques have to be employed. In order to determine whether histological methods were redundant and should be superseded by biomolecular analyses, small fragments of artificially burnt bone (human and non-human) were examined by quantitative and standard light microscopy, and the findings compared with newer biomolecular analyses based on identifying specific human albumin by ELISA and amplifying human mitochondrial DNA by PCR. For quantitative microscopy, reference data were first created using burnt bones from 15 human and 20 common domestic and farm animals. Measured osteon and Haversian canal parameters were analysed using multivariate statistical methods. Highly significant differences were found between values for human and non-human bone, and a canonical discriminant function equation was derived, giving a predicted correct classification of 79%. For the main study, samples of cortical bone were taken from three fresh cadavers, six human skeletons and ten freshly slaughtered animals and burnt by exposure to temperatures ranging from 800 to 1200 degrees C; charred fragments of human cortical bone from two forensic cases were also tested. Quantitative microscopy and canonical discriminant function gave the correct origin of every sample. Standard microscopy falsely assigned burnt bone from one human skeleton and one forensic case to a non-human source, but otherwise gave correct results. Human albumin was identified in five individuals, including one of the forensic cases, but mitochondrial DNA could not be amplified from any of the human bone. No false positive test results were seen with either biomolecular method; and human albumin and mitochondrial DNA were correctly identified in all unburnt control specimens. It was concluded that histological methods were not redundant and that quantitative microscopy provided an accurate and consistent means of determining the human or non-human origin of burnt bone and was more reliable than standard microscopy or the newer immunological and DNA techniques tested here.     

Implant Bone Integration Importance in Forensic Identification

Odontological identification consists of the comparison of antemortem dental information regarding a missing person with postmortem data from an unidentified corpse or human remains. Usually, the comparison concerns morphologic features that the operator chooses among all the visible characteristics because of inter‐individual uniqueness; for this reason, implants can be of enormous assistance. A case concerning the recovery of a burnt oral implant, connected to a bone fragment, among 2780 charred bone fragments, suspected to have belonged to a victim of homicide, is presented to demonstrate that dental implants and their site of bone integration represent a very precious element for personal forensic identification. Because of their morphological invariability in time and because of their morphologic uniqueness, they were used as evidence to associate unidentified human charred remains to a missing person where DNA analysis failed to do so. The case illustrates the fundamental contribution, not yet described in literature, given by the clinical aspects of tooth replacement with dental implants to a forensic discipline. Clinical practitioners should therefore be aware of the great importance of their work and of dental records in a forensic identification scenario.     

法医骨组织学研究

在实际检案中 ,当现场发现的骨骼残片体积较小时 ,用解剖学观察无法进行骨骼残片的法医鉴定 ,需使用骨组织学的方法进行骨骼残片的个体识别。目前 ,这是法医人类学中一门较活跃的领域 ,即法医骨组织学。法医骨组织学的内容主要包括两个方面 :(1)骨骼残片是否属于人类骨骼 ,或属于何种动物骨骼。这方面的研究包括人类骨骼的组织学特征研究及不同动物的组织学特征研究。 (2 )人类骨骼个体识别的组织学研究。这方面的研究主要包括 ,人类骨骼的组织学特征的年龄判断 ,例如股骨、胫骨、肱骨、锁骨等 ,以及使用骨组织学方法 ,进行人类骨骼的年龄评价的准确性研究。本文对上述内容进行了综述。     

Possibility of the species identification using blood stains located on the material evidences and bone fragments with the method of solid phase enzyme immunoassay with "IgG general-EIA-BEST" kit and human immunoglobulin G

The authors give the comparative analysis of Russian and foreign forensic medical methods of species character identification of the blood from the stains on the material evidences and bone fragments. It is shown that for this purpose it is feasible to apply human immunoglobulin G (IgG) and solid phase enzyme immunoassay (EIA) with the kit "IgG general-EIA-BEST". In comparison with the methods used in Russia this method is more sensitive, convenient for objective registration and computer processing. The results of experiments shown that it is possible to use the kit "IgG general-EIA-BEST" in forensic medicine for the species character identification of the blood from the stains on the material evidences and bone fragments.     

Metric analysis of sex differences in South African black and white pelves

Sex determination of unknown skeletal material is one of the most vital determinations made by forensic anthropologists. Numerous studies have focussed on the differences, both osteometric and morphological, between the sexes of a particular racial phenotype and population. Previous work by a variety of researchers has underscored the necessity of population specific standards. The purpose of this research is to metrically assess sex differences in the pelvis of South African whites and blacks and develop standards tailored to these groups. Data were collected from 400 known sex/race skeletons from the Pretoria and Dart Collections. Nine measurements (traditional and newly developed) were taken and subjected to SPSS stepwise and direct discriminant analysis. Results indicated that there are significant differences (p < or = 0.001) between the sexes of both races for most measurements. Discriminant function analysis selected ischial length as the most sexually dimorphic dimension in whites (averaged 86% accuracy), while acetabulum diameter was most diagnostic in blacks (averaged 84% accuracy). Six functions were developed from the pelvic dimensions. Highest accuracy was achieved from Function 1 (including all dimensions) which averaged 95.5% correct classification in whites and 94% in blacks. Functions based on selected parts of the pelvis were not as effective and ranged from 73-86% in whites and 72-84% in blacks. This research provided evidence of the significant sex differences that exist between the pelves of South African whites and blacks whilst measurements used here for discriminant function analysis gave classifications with high accuracies. These results can be used to aid in the identification of human skeletal remains in South Africa.     

Osteometric variation in the humerus: sexual dimorphism in South Africans

There has been a surge of research on forensic anthropology in South Africa. Differences between the populations of this country and others are demonstrated in many studies. Yet, many forensic osteometric techniques based on other populations are still in use. The purpose of the present study is to develop an osteometric sex determination technique using the humerus. The sample is composed of skeletons of 104 whites and 88 blacks from the Dart and Pretoria collections. Six humeral dimensions were initially analyzed using stepwise discriminant function statistics. Humeral head diameter, deltoid tuberosity circumference and epicondylar breadth were individually calculated in order to make the technique usable for fragmented remains. The results indicated that the head and epicondylar diameters are the best in whites to differentiate sexes from each other, while head diameter and maximum length are best in blacks. Accuracy of correct classification was as high as 96% in whites and 95% in blacks. Crossvalidation provided the same accuracy as the original classification. These accuracy percentages are as high as those expected from the femur and tibia. Posterior probability, which measures the percent affiliation of the sample with its original sex group, was also mostly 80% or better. South African collections are ideal for osteometric analysis, because they are still growing in numbers with cross-sectional representatives from the country.     

Evaluation of maxillary sinus dimensions in gender determination using helical CT scanning

Gender determination is an important step in identification in forensic medicine. CT measurements of maxillary sinuses may be useful to support gender identification. This study was undertaken to study the accuracy and reliability of maxillary sinus dimensions measurement in gender classification through the use of reconstructed helical CT images. Eighty-eight patients (43 men and 45 women) with age range from 20 to 49 years were selected in this study. The width, length, and height of the maxillary sinuses in addition to the total distance across both sinuses were measured. Data were subjected to discriminant analysis for gender using multiple regression analysis. Maxillary sinus height was the best discriminant parameter that could be used to study sexual dimorphism with an overall accuracy of 71.6%. Using multivariate analysis, 74.4% of male sinuses and 73.3% of female sinuses were sexed correctly. The overall percentage for sexing maxillary sinuses correctly was 73.9%. It can be concluded that reconstructed CT image can provide valuable measurements for maxillary sinuses and could be used for sexing when other methods of sexing are not conclusive.     

Comparative radiographic study of human and animal long bone patterns

The objective of this study was to test the hypothesis that certain radiographic features can be found to distinguish between human and animal long bone fragments, and therefore would be useful as an adjunct in forensic science identification. Using proposed radiographic criteria, 13 archeologists and 12 dentists were asked to identify 20 radiographic samples as representing human or animal bone. Results showed that archeologists correctly identified 86.8% of the samples, and dentists correctly identified 81.9%. Based on the results of this study, it was concluded that radiographic interpretation of long bone fragments may be a useful aid in a forensic science investigation of human and animal remains.     

Determination of some somatic body dimensions by osteometric foot measurements

Methods of diagnosis of somatic life-time peculiarities of man (body height, shoulders breadth and dimensions of extremities and their segments) were elaborated on the basis of a study of interrelations between the human body-built features, on the one hand, and measurement characteristics of the foot, on the other hand, by using the modern programs of multi-measurement statistics. Isolated skeleton bones of osseous complexes and fragments of native and burnt bones were the research objects. Footwear and cloths items, which belonged to an actual missing person, can be identification objects. The paper is primarily addressed to forensic medical experts and can be useful for criminalists, anthropologists and archeologists.     

High resolution melting analysis (HRM) based on 16SrRNA as a tool for personal identification with the human oral microbiome

Personal identification plays an important role in the forensic practice. The conventional methods of personal identification including STR, SNP and InDel are focusing on the molecular characteristics of the human cell. Recently, researchers pay attention to human microbiome by the reason that the human microbiome is rich in amount and variable among people. The purpose of this study is to apply the human oral microbiome to forensic personal identification. We designed one general primer pair: 518 F&806R, which targeted the 16SrRNA. We conducted the high-resolution melting analysis (HRM) with the one primer pairs. The results indicated that oral microbiome from different people could be distinguished by using HRM based on 16SrRNA. This study showed that human oral microbiome could be a promising marker for the forensic personal identification application.     

医学影像资料法医学同一认定30例分析

目的探讨医学影像资料法医学同一认定的鉴定原则、思路及方法。方法总结华西法医学鉴定中心1992—2012年受理的30例医学影像资料同一认定案例,对影像资料数量、种类,鉴定利用的识别点及其类型、间隔进行回顾性统计分析。结果胸部X线片为最常见的鉴定资料类型。利用的识别点共有33处、6种类型,包括：自身惟一性特征、骨骼自身结构的变异或发育畸形、疾病或退行性变、创伤后病理变化、医疗后果和正常形态的多处一致。结论影像资料常规审查是案件受理前提之一,同一认定时结合资料类型、投照部位及案情特点选择相应识别点,自身惟一性识别点最佳,多种类型识别点联合使用,识别点多处表现一致得出肯定结论者可应用于鉴定实践。     

Prognosis of sexual dimorphism with unfused hyoid bone: Artificial intelligence informed decision making with discriminant analysis

Depending on the metric and non-metric skeletal features of various bones, forensic experts proposed diverse sex identification methods. The main focus of the present study is to calculate sexual dimorphism in human unfused or disarticulated hyoid bone and compared it with studies conducted by different researchers. For this study, 293 unfused hyoid bones were accumulated and investigated from 173 male and 120 female cadavers of the northwest Indian population from the age of 15 to 80 years. Initially, discriminant analysis was performed on the dataset to predict sex and to get an idea for the crucial variables for sexual dimorphism. Later, significant variables predicted by the discriminant analysis were used for machine learning approaches to improve accuracy for sex determination. The standard scaler method is used for pre-processing of the data before machine learning analysis and to prevent overfitting and underfitting, 70 % of the whole dataset was utilized in the training of the model and the remaining data were used for testing the model. According to the discriminant analysis, body length (BL) and body height (BH) were found to be highly significant for the sex determination and predicted sex with 75.1 % accuracy. However, implementation of machine learning approaches such as the XG Boost classifier increased the accuracy to 83 % with sensitivity, and specificity scores of 0.81 and 0.84, respectively. Moreover, the ROC-AUC score achieved by the XG Boost classifier is 0.89; indicating machine learning investigation can improve the sex determination accuracy up to the appropriate standard.     

基于X线的活体骨骼年龄评定方法及其他技术

国内外通常利用X线片观察骨骼继发性骨化中心的出现和骨骺闭合程度的影像学特征来推断年龄。其中较常用的方法有计数法、计测法、图谱法、评分法及计算机辅助评定骨龄法等。目前国外普遍采用TW评分法。国内也有该评分法的应用报道。主要应用于体育和儿科临床实践中。法医临床学实践中常用六大关节判别方程法推断骨龄和活体年龄推断。其他还有利用牙齿内天冬氨酸的消旋化、骨密度检测以及端粒末端DNA片段长度的变化等年龄推断方法。     

Testing the validity of population-specific sex estimation equations: An evaluation based on talus and patella measurements

Sex estimation is essential for forensic scientists to identify human skeletal remains. However, the most sexually dimorphic elements like pelvis or skull are not always assessable. Osteometric analyses have proven useful in sex estimation, but also to be population specific. The main purpose of this study was to test the validity of contemporary Greek and Spanish discriminant functions for the talus and the patella, respectively, on a Swiss skeletal sample and to quantify the utility of the measurements as a novel approach in osteometric sex assessment.Four talus and three patella measurements on dry bone were obtained from 234 individuals of the modern cemetery SIMON Identified Skeletal Collection. The previously derived discriminant functions were applied, accuracies determined, the utility of the different measurements was assessed and new multivariable equations constructed.Accuracies varied between 67% and 86% for talus and 63% and 84% for patella, similar to those reported by the original studies. Multivariable equations should be preferred over equations based on single measurements and combining the most significant measurements rather than using several variables obtained the best possible accuracy. The new discriminant functions did not provide a substantial improvement to the original ones. The overall utility of talus and patella is limited, allowing sex estimation with sufficient certainty only in a small proportion of individuals.Discriminant functions developed in contemporary Greek or Spanish populations are in principle applicable also to Swiss contemporary populations. We recommend that at present existent studies of this type should be validated and tested rather than developing new formulas.     

活体鉴定400例放射学特点分析──兼论法医临床学与放射学的关系

为探讨法医临床学鉴定与放射学的关系，本文对４００例活体鉴定就放射学检查的有关问题进行回顾性研究。结果表明：２６６例进行了放射学检查（占６６．５％），其中Ｘ线１７６例（６６．２％），ＣＴ４３例（１６．１％），两者均有的４７例（１７．７％）。放射学检查部位中，Ｘ线以四肢为多，ＣＴ以颅脑为多。误诊率为９．０２％，放射学检查与致伤原因之间有一定关系，轻微伤中不必要的ＣＴ检查多见。并就放射学误诊的法律后果及不必要的放射学检查问题进行了讨论。本文从法医临床学的角度对放射学进行了评价，指出在活体鉴定中可以应用放射学知识协助证明损伤、推断损伤形成机制、个人识别及研究损伤时间。因此法医学鉴定人必须有放射学理论和技术方面的知识。作者还试图提出法医临床放射学。     

Anthropological Measurement of the Juvenile Clavicle Using Multi‐Detector Computed Tomography—Affirming Reliability

Currently, there is no standardized protocol for multi‐detector computed tomography (MDCT) measurement of juvenile remains. Using 33 juvenile clavicles, this paper investigates a protocol to allow MDCT measurements, comparable or supplemental with traditional osteometric measurements, to be acquired for application to previously published algorithms. The results illustrate that there is no significant difference between MDCT measurements and those taken by direct osteometric methods. By presenting such a protocol, this paper takes the first steps toward validation of the process of conversion from measurement of dry juvenile bone to MDCT compatibility and allows the forensic world to take a step forward in standardizing the way MDCT is used for forensic practice. This paper assesses the limitations and potential applications of this virtual approach and offers some suggestions for where further work might progress the conversion of these new approaches into legally admissible anthropological techniques of age estimation.     

Case involving differentiation of deer and human bone fragments

In a recent Louisiana forensic anthropology case, it was necessary to attempt species identification of six small bone fragments. The primary concern was whether or not they matched the fractured humerus of a woman killed by two shotgun blasts and then disposed of in the Mississippi River. These tiny fragments were recovered by law enforcement officers inside a jeep pickup and at the gas station where the vehicle had been cleaned. The police suspect claimed that these fragments were from a deer that he had recently killed. The small size of the pieces precluded positive recognition of human versus nonhuman origin based upon gross morphology and cortical thickness. Microscopic examination was possible. This analysis involved comparison of the unknown specimens to reference deer and human thin sections including bone recovered from the woman during autopsy. Examination of the jeep and gas station fragments revealed no plexiform bone, secondary (not primary) osteons, and variability in size and shape of the osteons and Haversian canals. These and other variables identified the bone fragments as human.     

Identification problems in emergencies with human victims

The problems and errors in personal identifications in rescue work after accidents with a large number of human victims are considered. The order of actions of forensic medical experts in personal identification in emergency situation is proposed.     

Identification of human gender by hand x-ray

A planimetric analysis of hand bones x-ray images is proposed for gender identification. The gender is determined by two methods: by interval estimation of bones size and calculation of the discriminant function and its comparison with group centroid values.