The Third Molar as an Age Marker in Adolescents: New Approach to Age Evaluation

Dental and Skeletal Imaging in Forensic Age Estimation: Disparities in Current Approaches and the Continuing Search for Optimization

Medical imaging for forensic age estimation in living adolescents and young adults continues to be controversial and a subject of discussion. Because age estimation based on medical imaging is well studied, it is the current gold standard. However, large disparities exist between the centers conducting age estimation, both between and within countries. This review provides an overview of the most common approaches applied in Europe, with case examples illustrating the differences in imaging modalities, in staging of development, and in statistical processing of the age data. Additionally, the review looks toward the future because several European research groups have intensified studies on age estimation, exploring four strategies for optimization: (1) increasing sample sizes of the reference populations, (2) combining single-site information into multifactorial information, (3) avoiding ionizing radiation, and (4) conducting a fully automated analysis.

Using Dental Age to Estimate Chronological Age in Czech Children Aged 3-18 Years

The Demirjian methods to determine dental age are based on analysis of orthopantograms. The dental age estimation is based on establishing the tooth development stages. The purpose of this study was to assess the accuracy of estimation of dental age by Demirjian in the use of all of his four methods. 505 Czech healthy boys and girls aged 3 to 18 years were examined radiographically at the Department of Stomatology, Second Faculty of Medicine, Charles University in Prague. It was mentioned the factors of underlying diseases influence the accuracy of the dental age estimation. For statistical evaluation, descriptive statistics was used to compare deviations of the mean values of chronological and dental age in each age group. The resulting difference between dental age and chronological age is not significant in both genders only when using both Demirjian 7-teeth methods of 1973 and 1976. Therefore these may be most appropriately used for forensic age estimation. There are shown standard deviation differences in different countries. Demirjian's original 7-teeth method from 1973 and Demirjian's revised 4-teeth method from 1976 appear to be the best methods for calculating the dental age of healthy Czech children of both genders.

Estimation of legal age using calcification stages of third molars in living individuals

The increased number of adolescents and young adults with unknown or inaccurately given date of birth is a current issue in justice and legal medicine. The objective of this study was to determine the extent to which third molar calcification stages assessed on panoramic X-rays could be useful as additional criteria for forensic age estimation in living individuals, focusing on the legally important ages 17 and 18. In a retrospective multi-center study, the developmental stage of each individual's third molar was analyzed using Demirjian's scale in 2360 cases. Additionally, sex, age and ancestry were assessed. Individuals with the lowest calcification stage of all present molars in stage H were ≥18 years with a likelihood of ≥99.05% in the female (n=388), and ≥99.24% in the male (n=482) population. The lowest calcification stage of all present third molars proved to be useful as an additional reliable criterion for the determination of an age ≥18 years.