Effects of Parturition on Pelvic Age Indicators

Abstract

This research assessed whether parity has a differential effect on age indicators of the pelvis. The data were collected from the William M. Bass Donated Skeletal Collection. Age indicators of the pubic symphysis and auricular surface were assessed using the Todd, Suchey-Brooks, Lovejoy et al., and Buckberry and Chamberlain scoring systems. A transition analysis was conducted, and scoring systems of the pubic symphysis showed the parous female group transitioning between eight and 14 years earlier than the nulliparous female and male groups, and 1 and 7 years earlier using the auricular surface methods. A likelihood ratio test produced significantly different results between parous and nulliparous females using the pubic symphysis (p < 0.01) but not the auricular surface (p > 0.05). Although parous females were inaccurately assessed more often than nulliparous females, no correction of methods is necessary at this time as current standards take parity into account by utilizing a lumped female sample.

Sex, Parity, and Scars: A Meta‐analytic Review

“…It has been previously asserted that parturition may be only one of a multitude of factors that cause pelvic scarring; however, this study indicates that there may be no causal relationship between parturition and pelvic scarring whatsoever. The results of this study agree with the findings of Bongiovanni , specifically that aspects of the pubis correlate more strongly with parity than the auricular area. Greater understanding of the biological mechanisms behind pelvic scars, and indeed the remodeling of the pubis and auricular surface more broadly, is required to determine their true etiology.…”

Quantification of Pubic Symphysis Metamorphosis Based on the Analysis of Clinical MDCT Scans in a Contemporary Malaysian Population

“…Pubic symphyseal morphological changes are also known to be affected (i.e. accelerated/decelerated skeletal aging, differing morphological and structural variation) by osteoporosis and osteopenia , parturition , and body size , and others. There are also regional differences in the relationship between age and pubic bone development, thus accounting for possible influences of population variation on age estimation based on the pubic symphyseal region .…”

Bone Mineral Density Adult Age Estimation in Forensic Anthropology: A Test of the DXAGE Application

“…Most of this limitation has to do with the intrinsic nature of bone as a tissue itself, in addition to the many extrinsic variables surrounding the process of human aging. A host of variables including but not limited to variation in habitual activity levels, the presence or absence of pathological conditions such as osteoporosis, body mass, and parturition are thought to impact the process of adult aging . In addition, age‐at‐death methodologies introduce error to the process due to the biased nature of skeletal reference populations and the statistical approaches used to generate age estimates .…”