NCJ Number
225883
Journal
Journal of Forensic Sciences Volume: 54 Issue: 1 Dated: January 2009 Pages: 13-19
Date Published
January 2009
Length
7 pages
Annotation
This study investigated the accuracy of three methods for estimating the stature of children from long-bone lengths: the femur/stature ratio proposed by Feldesman, the regression equation developed by Telkka et al., and the regression equation developed by Smith.
Abstract
The study found that stature (cadaver length) was consistently underestimated by all three methods, from a minimum of 2.9 cm to a maximum of 19.3 cm. The femur/stature ratio provided the least accurate stature estimates, and predictions were not significantly improved by the other two methods. Differences between true and estimated stature were greatest when using the length of lower limb bones. The children in the study sample developed in less than optimal environmental conditions compared with the children used in studies that contributed to the development of the three methods of stature estimation. The children in the current study were stunted in their growth and had proportionally shorter legs than the children in the studies leading to the development of the three estimation methods. This suggests that stature estimation methods are not universally applicable, given environmental differences among populations. Such variations must be taken into account. The variations can be somewhat minimized by using measurements of the length of upper limb bones, which are less susceptible than lower limbs to variations in environmental circumstances. The sample used in the current study consisted of nine identified immature skeletons (seven males and two females) of known cadaver length, with ages between 1 and 14 years old at death. The subjects were from the skeletal collection housed at the Bocage Museum in Lisbon, Portugal, which consists of unclaimed skeletons from the local cemeteries in Lisbon. 4 tables and 56 references