Evolution of dental age estimation methods in adults over the years from occlusal wear to more sophisticated recent techniques

Abstract

Background Age estimation has been an integral part of forensic science, and age estimation by dental means is by far the most commonly employed method. Dental age estimation in children is more accurate and straightforward as most methods use the chronological stages of odontogenesis that are highly systematic, reducing the chances of dispersed results. In contrast, estimation of age in adults becomes tricky and less accurate with varied approaches since tooth formation is already complete. Main body The methods of adult dental age estimation have come a long way from a calculated guess based on crude visual observation of teeth to radiological methods and to more recent sophisticated methods. Technological advances have opened up molecular and genetic methods by utilizing DNA methylation and telomere length to improve the accuracy of age estimation by reducing error chances. Conclusions Although dental age estimation methods in children and adolescents have been extensively reviewed, various adult age estimation methods are not reviewed as a whole. The aim of this review is to appraise the evolution of dental age estimation methods in adults over the years from mere visualization of dental attrition to employing more sophisticated means such as radioactive carbon dating and genetics. This comprehensive review also attempts to add an account of the accuracy and suitability of various adult dental age estimation methods.

Influence of light conditions (colour temperature and illuminance) on the evaluation of root translucency for the application of Lamendin’s age-at-death estimation technique

“…From a forensic anthropological perspective, estimation of age-at-death of adult individuals represents a central focus in the identification of human skeletal remains and of the living. Teeth undergo age-related morphological and biochemical changes, including attrition, secondary dentine deposition, gingival regression, cementum apposition, root resorption, dentine translucency and aspartic acid racemization [22,23]. However, the most frequently considered parameters are secondary dentine deposition (e.g.…”

Age Estimation in Brazilian Adults Using the Pulp/Tooth Ratio of the Maxillary Canine and Mandibular Second Premolar

“…All images were outlined using a pen and Huon ® Inspiroy 420 graphics tablet (Shenzhen Huion Animation Technology Co., Ltd., Shenzhen, China). The teeth were classified according to the FDI World Dental Federation notation [32]. Initially, teeth 13 and 45 were evaluated.…”

“…Given Brazil's mixed population [13], the relationships and variations in the pulp/tooth ratio may differ significantly when compared to more ethnically uniform populations [10,18,[30][31][32][33]. The present study aimed to compare the effectiveness of different equations in estimating the age of an adult Brazilian subpopulation by calculating the pulp/tooth ratio of the maxillary canine and mandibular second premolar in panoramic and periapical radiographs, and to develop equations for estimating age based on values obtained from this sample.…”

The applications of MicroCT in studying age‐related tooth morphological change and dental age estimation: A scoping review

“…Studies in dental age estimation have documented a variety of age estimation methods including visual methods, histological methods, biochemical methods, and genetic methods [4]. Amongst all these methods, histological methods based on specific characteristics and morphometrics of tooth histology remain the most reliable and the most used method.…”