A quantitative approach for sex estimation based on cranial morphology

Nikita, Efthymia; Michopoulou, Efrossyni

doi:10.1002/ajpa.23376

Cited by 32 publications

(25 citation statements)

References 33 publications

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“…The method implemented by the R script in this technical note is a variant of that proposed in an earlier study and it is based on the ability of the Canny edge detector (package imager , written by Simon Barthelme) to automatically determine the cranial outline provided that the cranium is photographed on a flat surface of uniform color and with sufficient contrast to the color of the cranium. Subsequently, the cranial image can be straightforwardly rotated to the Frankfort plane and the coordinates of key landmarks required for the quantification of the shape of cranial sexually dimorphic structures are defined.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Nasion and vertex define the frontal bone profile, while the occipital bone profile extends from opisthocranium up to half the distance (along the horizontal axis) between mastoidale and opisthocranium. Based on these profiles, the DVs defined in the original study for the glabella/frontal bone and occipital bone are computed and used for sex estimation by means of discriminant analysis. Some secondary alterations of the original method, pertaining to the frontal and occipital bone DVs, are presented below.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This approach cannot be applied to the mastoid process since only part of the profile of this structure is captured by the overall cranial perimeter using the Canny edge detector. For this reason, the number of DVs concerning the mastoid process was reduced from five , to just one, mastoid height, Mh.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The DVs proposed in the original study are used in the current R script with minor alterations. Table provides a list and brief explanation of the DVs adopted in this study.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…A recent paper proposed a method for sex estimation based on the quantification of the shape of sexually dimorphic cranial traits, namely the glabella, mastoid process, and external occipital protuberance . This method was based on obtaining digital photographs of the lateral view of the cranium, drawing the profile of the above sexually dimorphic structures using Photoshop or other imaging software, and computing a number of discriminant variables (DVs) that express the shape of these three structures.…”

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confidence: 99%

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Quantitative Sex Estimation Based on Cranial Traits Using R Functions

Nikita

2018

Journal of Forensic Sciences

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This paper presents an R script that quantifies the shape of selected cranial traits and automates sex estimation. The proposed functions were tested on two modern Greek assemblages. The discriminant variables input in the functions are calculated from a digital photograph of the lateral view of the cranium. The cranial outline is determined using the Canny edge detector and discriminant variables that quantify the shape of the glabella/frontal bone, mastoid process, and external occipital protuberance are computed. The best cross-validated results for pooled sexes in the Athens Collection range from 84.2% to 87.3%, and increase up to 93.9% when half of the sample is used for training and the rest for prediction, while correct classification for the Cretan material is 80-90% for optimum combinations of discriminant variables. The greatest advantage of the proposed method is its straightforward and time-efficient application.

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The DVs proposed in the original study are used in the current R script with minor alterations. Table provides a list and brief explanation of the DVs adopted in this study.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Quantitative Sex Estimation Based on Cranial Traits Using R Functions

Nikita

2018

Journal of Forensic Sciences

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Documented skeletal collections in Greece: Composition, research, and future prospects

Nikita

2020

American J Phys Anthropol

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Documented skeletal collections constitute a key resource in forensic anthropological and bioarchaeological research as they allow both the development of methods for the estimation of various parameters of an individual's biological profile, and the examination of the accuracy of existing methods in different skeletal assemblages. The acknowledgement of the utility of documented collections is attested by the large number of such collections across the world. The current review will focus on two modern reference collections in Greece, briefly presenting their composition, the research projects in which they have been employed, and future prospects for their use.

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Testing the accuracy of the SexEst software for sex estimation in a modern Greek sample

Nikita,

Garoufi,

Valakos

et al. 2024

Intl J of Osteoarchaeology

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Sex estimation from human skeletal remains is fundamental in osteoarcheology and forensic anthropology. The increasing availability of reference skeletal collections across the world has allowed the development of morphological and metric methods for skeletal sex estimation, some of which may be implemented in specialized computer software. The present study aims to evaluate the freely available SexEst software, which utilizes cranial and postcranial measurements, and different classification models for sex estimation, on a contemporary Greek population comprising of 227 (126 males and 101 females) adult individuals. After the calculation of intra‐observer error to assess the repeatability of the measurements, the proposed variables were tested for classification accuracy individually and in different combinations. Based on the results, the postcranial models outperformed the cranial ones in all cases and can be adequately applied on a Greek population sample. The light gradient boosting (LGB) algorithm yielded the highest correct classification rates when no missing values exist, while the linear discriminant analysis (LDA) models should only be used when dealing with missing data. The highest classification accuracy for a 0.65 posterior probability threshold was reached when utilizing a combination of postcranial variables (89.67%), while the lowest was achieved with the cranial measurement “Glabella‐occipital length” (45.00%). The same models yielded the highest and lowest accuracy for a 0.5 probability threshold, with values of 92.96% and 67.73%, respectively. Combining variables yielded higher accuracies in both skeletal regions, suggesting that the software would be more helpful in cases of intact skeletons. The loss of classification accuracy due to population specificity further corroborates the need to include different ancestries in sex estimation software.

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A quantitative approach for sex estimation based on cranial morphology

Cited by 32 publications

References 33 publications

Quantitative Sex Estimation Based on Cranial Traits Using R Functions

Quantitative Sex Estimation Based on Cranial Traits Using R Functions

Documented skeletal collections in Greece: Composition, research, and future prospects

Testing the accuracy of the SexEst software for sex estimation in a modern Greek sample

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