NCJ Number
213734
Journal
Journal of Forensic Sciences Volume: 51 Issue: 2 Dated: March 2006 Pages: 238-243
Date Published
March 2006
Length
6 pages
Annotation
This study used a quantitative method to estimate the changes in arachnoid foveae (pits found on the endocranial surface) with age.
Abstract
The study found no significant relationship between arachnoid foveae volume and age in a sample of 63 male skulls of known age. These findings support those of previous similar studies. The method used showed high intraobserver and interobserver reliability. The development of arachnoid foveae may be influenced by a variety of health-related factors; and the use of the Hamann-Todd collection, which is composed of individuals of low socioeconomic status and dating to the preantibiotic era may have accentuated health-related variability when compared with modern samples. This study, along with the previous studies, does not prove that arachnoid granulations and fovea do not increase in number and size with age; however, the findings suggest that they do not predictably change with age from one individual to the next. This renders such measurements as unreliable for forensic determination of age at death. The pilot sample consisted of nine skulls from the Palmer Anatomy Laboratory. Arachnoid foveae were filled with sand, which was extracted with a vacuum pump. Mass was determined with an analytical balance and converted to volume. A reliability analysis was performed by using intraclass correlation coefficients. The method was found to be highly reliable. The relationship between total volume and age was then examined in a sample of 63 males of known age from the Hamann-Todd collection. Linear regression analysis was used to determine the relationship between total volume and age or foveae frequency and age. 5 figures, 3 tables, and 24 references