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Palamenghi A, Gibelli D, Mazzarelli D, De Angelis D, Sforza C, Cattaneo C. Rumor has it: A narrative review on the use of skeletal non-metric traits and variants for personal identification. Leg Med (Tokyo) 2023; 65:102316. [PMID: 37597346 DOI: 10.1016/j.legalmed.2023.102316] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/02/2023] [Revised: 07/31/2023] [Accepted: 08/14/2023] [Indexed: 08/21/2023]
Abstract
The human skeleton displays an immense array of traits and variant features that are elements of inter-individual variability. The general assumption is that they may represent individualizing markers for the personal identification of unidentified decedents, but very few works consider them as such. This review provides an overview on the possible use of non-metric traits and skeletal variants for personal identification. The paper discusses the issues related to unquantified comparisons, then it presents a statistical approach based on frequencies of these features for identifying unknown remains. Narrowing down an initial number of 1000 papers, the core of the review is represented by 10 papers that considered non-metric traits and skeletal variants as individualizing features, according to both qualitative and quantitative assessments. Despite visual examination remains the gold-standard, more sound methods are requested to quantify the strength of a match or a mismatch. This especially applies in the wake of juridical demands, hence also satisfying the desire of prosecutors and judges to rely on a "quantified" risk. To this purpose, non-metric traits and skeletal variants seem to be a suitable tool to provide quantified evidence, when related frequencies are known.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrea Palamenghi
- LABANOF, Laboratorio di Antropologia e Odontologia Forense, Sezione di Medicina Legale, Dipartimento di Scienze Biomediche per la Salute, Università degli Studi di Milano, Via L. Mangiagalli 37, 20133 Milan, Italy; LAFAS, Laboratorio di Anatomia Funzionale dell'Apparato Stomatognatico, Dipartimento di Scienze Biomediche per la Salute, Università degli Studi di Milano, Via L. Mangiagalli 31, 20133 Milan, Italy.
| | - Daniele Gibelli
- LAFAS, Laboratorio di Anatomia Funzionale dell'Apparato Stomatognatico, Dipartimento di Scienze Biomediche per la Salute, Università degli Studi di Milano, Via L. Mangiagalli 31, 20133 Milan, Italy
| | - Debora Mazzarelli
- LABANOF, Laboratorio di Antropologia e Odontologia Forense, Sezione di Medicina Legale, Dipartimento di Scienze Biomediche per la Salute, Università degli Studi di Milano, Via L. Mangiagalli 37, 20133 Milan, Italy
| | - Danilo De Angelis
- LABANOF, Laboratorio di Antropologia e Odontologia Forense, Sezione di Medicina Legale, Dipartimento di Scienze Biomediche per la Salute, Università degli Studi di Milano, Via L. Mangiagalli 37, 20133 Milan, Italy
| | - Chiarella Sforza
- LAFAS, Laboratorio di Anatomia Funzionale dell'Apparato Stomatognatico, Dipartimento di Scienze Biomediche per la Salute, Università degli Studi di Milano, Via L. Mangiagalli 31, 20133 Milan, Italy
| | - Cristina Cattaneo
- LABANOF, Laboratorio di Antropologia e Odontologia Forense, Sezione di Medicina Legale, Dipartimento di Scienze Biomediche per la Salute, Università degli Studi di Milano, Via L. Mangiagalli 37, 20133 Milan, Italy
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Beltran-Aroca CM, Lopez-Alcaraz M, Perez-Jorge P, Velazquez-Gomez JL, Font-Ugalde P, Girela-Lopez E. Forensic age estimation: comparison and validation of the Iscan method in 3D reconstructions using a surface scanner in a Spanish population. Int J Legal Med 2023; 137:773-785. [PMID: 36930377 PMCID: PMC10085965 DOI: 10.1007/s00414-023-02983-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/28/2022] [Accepted: 03/04/2023] [Indexed: 03/18/2023]
Abstract
When investigating a death, post-mortem identification provides with results of great legal and humanitarian significance. The effectiveness of the methods used to estimate age depends on the reference population, considering variables such as sex and ancestry. The aim of this study was to validate the Iscan method to estimate age in a Spanish forensic population, comparing the estimates obtained in dry bones and 3D reconstructions created with a surface scanner. We carried out a cross-sectional study on 109 autopsied corpses (67% male), scanning the sternal end of the right fourth rib in a 3D mesh, using an EinScan-Pro® surface scanner (precision: 0.05 mm). Two observers estimated the phases in dry bones and 3D images according to the Iscan method and to the sex of the subject. The mean age was 57.73 years (SD = 19.12 years;18-93 years). The intra-observer agreement was almost perfect in bones (κ = 0.877-0.960) and 3D images (κ = 0.954), while the inter-observer agreement was almost perfect in bones (κ = 0.813) and substantial in 3D images (κ = 0.727). The correlation with the Iscan phases was very strong in bones (Rho = 0.794-0.820; p < 0.001) and strong in 3D images (Rho = 0.690-0.691; p < 0.001). Both sex-adjusted linear regression models were significant (dry bones: R2 = 0.65; SEE = ± 11.264 years; 3D images: R2 = 0.50; SEE = ± 13.537 years) from phase 4 onwards. An overestimation of age was observed in the first phases, and an underestimation in the later ones. Virtual analysis using a surface scanner in the fourth rib is a valid means of estimating age. However, the error values and confidence intervals were considerable, so the joint use of different methods and anatomical sites is recommended.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cristina M Beltran-Aroca
- Section of Legal and Forensic Medicine, Faculty of Medicine and Nursing, University of Cordoba, Av. Menendez Pidal S/N. 14004, Cordoba, Spain.
| | - Manuel Lopez-Alcaraz
- Section of Legal and Forensic Medicine, Faculty of Medicine and Nursing, University of Cordoba, Av. Menendez Pidal S/N. 14004, Cordoba, Spain
- Institute of Legal Medicine and Forensic Sciences of Cordoba, Cordoba, Spain
| | - Pablo Perez-Jorge
- Section of Legal and Forensic Medicine, Faculty of Medicine and Nursing, University of Cordoba, Av. Menendez Pidal S/N. 14004, Cordoba, Spain
- Institute of Legal Medicine and Forensic Sciences of Cordoba, Cordoba, Spain
| | - Jose L Velazquez-Gomez
- Section of Legal and Forensic Medicine, Faculty of Medicine and Nursing, University of Cordoba, Av. Menendez Pidal S/N. 14004, Cordoba, Spain
- Institute of Legal Medicine and Forensic Sciences of Cordoba, Cordoba, Spain
| | - Pilar Font-Ugalde
- Department of Medical and Surgical Science, Faculty of Medicine and Nursing, University of Cordoba, Maimonides Biomedical Research Institute of Cordoba (IMIBIC), Cordoba, Spain
| | - Eloy Girela-Lopez
- Section of Legal and Forensic Medicine, Faculty of Medicine and Nursing, University of Cordoba, Av. Menendez Pidal S/N. 14004, Cordoba, Spain
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Keyes CA, Mahon TJ, Gilbert A. Human Decedent Identification Unit: identifying the deceased at a South African medico-legal mortuary. Int J Legal Med 2022; 136:1889-1896. [PMID: 36136144 PMCID: PMC9510341 DOI: 10.1007/s00414-022-02893-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/05/2022] [Accepted: 09/14/2022] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Abstract
The Johannesburg Forensic Pathology Services medico-legal mortuary perform postmortem examinations on all cases of unnatural deaths in the greater Johannesburg metropolitan area, in South Africa. Unidentified decedents can comprise up to 10.0% of the total number of annual admissions at this medico-legal mortuary. To address the identification of the deceased, the Human Decedent Identification Unit (ID Unit) was created to perform secondary examinations for identification purposes. The aim of this study was to report on the identification methods and success rate of the ID Unit. Over a period of 31 months (January 2018–July 2020), unidentified decedents comprised 8.1% (n = 693) of all cases at the Johannesburg mortuary. The ID Unit processed 385 (55.6%) unidentified individuals during this period, who were mostly adult (100%), Black (94.5%), males (91.7%). DNA samples were successfully collected from most cases in the form of hair (96.4%; n = 371), blood (92.2%; n = 355), and nail samples (90.1%; n = 347). Fingerprints retrieved in 65.5% of cases (n = 252). Ultimately, 87 persons (22.6%) were positively identified. Fingerprinting was the most successful method of identification (98.9% of cases; n = 86). One positive identification was facilitated through DNA analysis. The nationalities of the positively identified decedents were from South Africa (52.9%; n = 46), Zimbabwe (5.7%), Uganda (1.1%), Mozambique (1.1%), Malawi (1.1%), South Sudan (1.1%), and undisclosed in 36.8% of cases. Through the collaborative efforts of all the agencies involved, the impact of the work of this ID Unit is vast—not only for South African authorities but most importantly for the decedents and their families.
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Affiliation(s)
- Craig Adam Keyes
- Division of Forensic Medicine and Pathology, School of Clinical Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa.
| | - Trisha-Jean Mahon
- Division of Forensic Medicine and Pathology, School of Clinical Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa
| | - Allison Gilbert
- Division of Forensic Medicine and Pathology, School of Clinical Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa
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Blau S, Rowbotham SK. Not so simple: Understanding the complexities of establishing identity for cases of unidentified human remains in an Australian medico-legal system. Forensic Sci Int 2021; 330:111107. [PMID: 34826760 DOI: 10.1016/j.forsciint.2021.111107] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/30/2021] [Revised: 10/07/2021] [Accepted: 11/15/2021] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
Discussions regarding the importance and complexities associated with the identification of deceased persons have typically focused on disaster or humanitarian contexts where there has been large scale loss of life. In contrast, identification efforts for unidentified human remains (UHR) cases in routine domestic casework contexts have received relatively little attention. The aim of this paper was to present the situation regarding the count of UHR cases in the state of Victoria, Australia, dating between 1960 and 2020, and to provide a constructively critical appraisal of the factors that have, and continue to, hinder their identification. Over the six decades a total of 132 coronial cases remained unidentified; an average of 2-3 cases per annum. For each case, the preservation of the remains, geographical location of where they were recovered from, primary (fingerprints, dental, DNA) and secondary identification methods that had been employed, potential for additional identification testing and current curation of the remains, were recorded. The difficulty with providing a "total count" of UHR cases is discussed, as well as the ways in which preservation, availability of identification methods, changes in policies and procedures, record management, changes in practice and advancements in technology, have impacted the identification process. This paper demonstrates the complexity of the investigation of UHR cases, and why individuals continue to remain unidentified in 2021.
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Affiliation(s)
- Soren Blau
- Manager, Human Identification Services, Senior Forensic Anthropologist, Victorian Institute of Forensic Medicine, Department of Forensic Medicine, Monash University, Victoria, Australia.
| | - Samantha Kate Rowbotham
- Forensic Anthropologist, Human Identification Services, Victorian Institute of Forensic Medicine/ Department of Forensic Medicine, Monash University, Victoria, Australia
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