A new method of stature estimation for forensic anthropological application

Abstract

In forensic and anthropological studies, body height is usually estimated from a single regression formula of the population of interest. The aim of this study was to test the accuracy of regression formulae devised for different stature groups (short, medium, tall) within the same population. Our study is based on 242 adult male subjects aged 18.1-44.6 years. Body height, tibia length, and ulna length were measured by standard anthropometric techniques. The subjects were randomly divided into a study group (Group 1, n = 121) and a cross-validation group (Group 2, n = 121). In the first stage of the study, general regression formulae based on ulna length, tibia length, and a multiple equation based on ulna and tibia lengths were created for Group 1, and these equations were tested using the data and actual heights of the Group 2 subjects. In the second stage of the study, stature group-specific formulae were constructed for the same variable(s) (ulna length, tibia length, and both of them). Since the body height of the victims is unknown in cases for which estimations need to be made, Group 2 was categorized according to long bone (ulna, tibia, and ulna + tibia) lengths, using the 15th and 85th percentiles as cut-off points. Each set of group-specific formulae were tested with the cross-validation sample. The differences between the true and estimated heights were evaluated using the paired t-test, and results of the general formulae were compared with those of each of the stature group-specific formulae. Our results suggest that stature group-specific formulae give more accurate estimates of height, and that this is particularly significant for individuals who are short or tall relative to the average of a population.

Estimation of Stature from Percutaneous Length of Ulna and Tibia in Medical Students of Nagaland

“…Ilayperuma et al [8] found the r value between stature and ulna in males and females to be 0.66 and 0.76, respectively, which was close to the present findings of 0.692 and 0.787, respectively, with the r values more in females than that of males in both the studies. [ Table.8] Trotter and Gleser [7], Duyar et al [10], Jantz and Jantz [22] observed that upper limb was less correlated with stature than lower limbs which was found to be true in present study.…”

“…Maring tribe of Manipur [2], Scheduled caste female population of Haryana [3], Oriya population [15] and Burdwan population of West Bengal [16] were shorter than the present study population whereas Sri Lankan males [8], Turkish [10], Maharashtran population [14], Nigerian [17] and Kurdish females [19] were taller than the present group. Oriya population [15] shorter stature may be due to the inclusion of elderly age groups upto 80 years as study has shown reduction of stature after the age of 50 years [20] due to the degeneration of spine, loss of intervertebral tissue and loss of BMD.…”

“…= Standard Error of Estimate. [ Table 6] [2] 0.863 Bhavna & Nath S [5] 0.765 Mohanty NK [15] 0.951 0.939 Trivedi A et al [21] 0.434 0.601 Ilayperuma I et al [8] 0.66 0.76 Prasad A et al [14] 0.65 0.6 Duyar I et al [10] 0.601 0.802 Present study 0.692 0.787 0.740 0.843…”

“…[2,3,[5][6][7][8][9] In this study, we have measured the percutaneous length of ulna and tibia as they are known to give strong correlation to body height. [10] Tibia is the medial bone of the leg and both its condyles and medial malleolus are visible and prominent and are easily accessible percutaneously. It provides one of the best estimates of stature and also resists erosion & retains anatomical shape for long even after burial.…”

Association of Hand Length with Height in Nigerian School Children

“…Measurement of height is important for determination of basic energy requirement, standardization, and measures of physical capacity and for adjusting drug dosages (Jalzem and Gledhill, 1993). However in some situations the exact height cannot be determined directly because the patient is unable to stand as a result of neuromuscular weakness, deformities of axial skeleton such as kyphosis, lordosis, scoliosis, lost of lower limbs and in patients who have undergone amputations (Duyar and Pelin, 2003;Duyar et al, 2006). In such patients, height does not reflect the body size and the use of height measurements in prediction equation is likely to produce error.…”