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A Test of Age Estimation Methods on Impacted Third Molars in Males
Author(s) -
Pilloud Marin A.,
Heim Kelly
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
journal of forensic sciences
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.715
H-Index - 96
eISSN - 1556-4029
pISSN - 0022-1198
DOI - 10.1111/1556-4029.13860
Subject(s) - impaction , molar , dentistry , forensic dentistry , medicine , estimation , orthodontics , concomitant , age groups , demography , surgery , engineering , systems engineering , sociology
This study tests the relationship between third molar impaction and its concomitant effect on age estimation methods. Data were collected on radiographs of males analyzed in the Defense POW / MIA Accounting Agency Laboratory ( n = 114). Radiographs of skeletonized individuals were scored for dental development, and age was assigned based on the appropriate ancestry‐based method. Differences between identified age and estimated dental age were assessed to determine whether molar impaction affected root development and age estimations. Results indicate that impacted teeth tend to be underdeveloped and result in age estimates that are too low. While these results are of note to anthropologists and odontologists performing dental age estimates, more work is needed to explore the effect of impaction on development among a more diverse sample.