Do machine learning methods solve the main pitfall of linear regression in dental age estimation?

Introduction: Age estimation is crucial in forensic and anthropological fields. Teeth, are valued for their resilience to environmental factors and their preservation over time, making them essential for age estimation when other skeletal remains deteriorate. Recently, Machine Learning algorithms have been used in age estimation, demonstrating high levels of accuracy.

Comparison of original and new South African formulae for age estimation in African Black and white children and adolescents using dental and hand-wrist methods.

Background: Methods for age estimation in children involve measurements of: (1) the projections of open apices and tooth heights (T), (2) the total area of the carpal bones and the epiphyses of the ulna and radius (HW), and (3) a combination of these parameters (THW). This study aimed to compare the accuracy of the original formulae for T, HW, and THW in Black South African (BSA) and White South African (WSA) samples of children and adolescents.

Materials And Methods: The sample comprised 556 subjects, 164 BSA (71 males and 93 females) and 392 WSA (171 males and 221 females) aged 6 to 16 years.

Validation of morphological ear classification devised by principal component analysis using three-dimensional images for human identification.

This study attempts to classify ear morphology for human identification in forensic investigations by distinguishing between the upper auricle and lobule areas. A three-dimensional homologous model of the ear was created using 414 ear images of males aged 17-93 years reconstructed from computed tomography scans of forensic autopsy cases. Morphological changes were visualized using principal component analysis and areas of significant individual differences within the entire ear were identified.

Reliability of a forensic odontology method for age-at-death estimation in adults: A Mexican case study.

This study aimed to evaluate the reliability of an age estimation method based on the pulp⁄tooth area ratio by assessing intra- and inter-examiner agreement across five observers at different intervals. Using the same X-ray device and technical parameters, 96 digital periapical X-ray images of upper and lower canines were obtained from 28 deceased people in Central America, whose age at death ranged from 19 to 49 years. Excellent and good agreement of results were achieved, and there were no statistically significant differences.

Liability and Medico-Legal Implications in Estimating the Likelihood of Having Attained 14 Years of Age in Pediatric Clinical Practice: A Pilot Study.

Accurate methods of age estimation are more essential than ever due to the rise in undocumented individuals without proper identification, often linked to illegal immigration and criminal activities. This absence of reliable records presents challenges within the legal systems, where age thresholds in the context of children's rights vary across countries. Age 14 has global significance, as established by the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and the EU for administrative purposes.

Medico-legal indicators and cut-offs in different age classes through quantitative analysis of epiphyseal fusion segments on knee CT scans.

Scientists are interested in determining age in subadults for several forensic purposes. High- resolution instrumental techniques are being increasingly used for age estimation, driven by the need to minimize errors; in this context, several studies have focused on the knee joint, recognized as a potential site for age examination in late adolescence. We analyzed 200 CT scans performed on Russian subjects (106 males and 94 females) between 13 and 20 years, without growth diseases, endocrine disorders, or osteodystrophy.

The accuracy of Cameriere methods in Turkish children: chronological age estimation using developing teeth and carpals and epiphyses of the ulna and radius.

The aim of the present study was to develop a specific formula by measuring the developing teeth, carpal bones, and epiphyses of the ulna and radius to determine the chronological age in Turkish children. The left developing permanent mandibular teeth were evaluated, and the number of teeth with closed apex was recorded. The distance between the inner sides of open apex/apices was measured by using the ImageJ program and divided by the tooth length.

Leading Pathogens Involved in Co-Infection and Super-Infection with COVID-19: Forensic Medicine Considerations after a Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

The COVID-19 pandemic raised concerns about the potential for co-infection or over-infection with other respiratory infections, as they can complicate the diagnosis, treatment and prognosis of the disease. This is also a challenge for forensic pathologists, who may come across cases where the presence of co-infection or over-infection is suspected or confirmed, and it is important that they take this into account when determining the cause of death. The aim of this systematic review is to analyse the prevalence of each specific pathogen co-infecting or over-infecting patients with SARS-CoV-2 infection.

Ear identification: A multi-ethnic study sample.

The external human ear is considered to be highly variable among individuals. Hence, forensic applications could be explored for human identification. This research compares the usefulness of Cameriere's ear identification method, in samples originating from six different countries (Brazil, India, Japan, Russia, South Africa and Turkey) in order to examine possible differences in their accuracy values.

Anthropometric analysis of orbital and nasal parameters for sexual dimorphism: New anatomical evidences in the field of personal identification through a retrospective observational study.

Orbital and nasal parameters among modern humans show considerable variation, which affects facial shape, and these characteristics vary according to race, region, and period in evolution. The aim of the study was to ascertain whether there are sex differences in the orbital and/or nasal indexes and/or the single measurements used to calculate these in a Kosovar population. The following parameters were taken into consideration: orbital height (OH), orbital width (OW), nasal height (NH), and nasal width (NW).

Combining Bayesian Calibration and Copula Models for Age Estimation.

Accurately estimating and predicting chronological age from some anthropometric characteristics of an individual without an identity document can be crucial in the context of a growing number of forced migrants. In the related literature, the prediction of chronological age mostly relies upon the use of a single predictor, which is usually represented by a dental/skeletal maturity index, or multiple independent ordinal predictor (stage of maturation). This paper is the first attempt to combine a robust method to predict chronological age, such as Bayesian calibration, and the use of multiple continuous indices as predictors.

An Effective Model for Estimating Age in Unaccompanied Minors under the Italian Legal System.

This article presents an effective model for estimating the age of subjects without identification documents, in accordance with Italian legislation covering unaccompanied minors, using instrumental methods recognized by the scientific community for age estimation. A decision-making tree has been developed, in which the first step is a physical examination. If secondary sexual characteristics are fully developed and there are no obvious signs of abnormal growth, dental X-rays are the next step.

Third molar maturity index (I) assessment according to different geographical zones: a large multi-ethnic study sample.

Identification of living undocumented individuals highlights the need for accurate, precise, and reproducible age estimation methods, especially in those cases involving minors. However, when their country of origin is unknown, or it can be only roughly estimated, it is extremely difficult to apply assessment policies, procedures, and practices that are accurate and child-sensitive. The main aim of this research is to optimize the correct classification of adults and minors by establishing new cut-off values for four different continents (Africa, America, Asia, and Europe).

Quantitative and Qualitative Approaches for Dental Age Assessment in Sub Adult Portuguese Population: European Regression Formula and Demirjian Stages.

Introduction: Over the last decade, the criminal justice system among the European countries deals with a new group of people, the undocumented people. In the criminal field, most of the suspected claimed to be under the minor legal age according to the type of crime. The government of each European country is committed to protecting the children and vulnerable people.

Vaccines as a preventive tool for substance use disorder: A systematic review including a meta-analysis on nicotine vaccines' immunogenicity.

The research on substance use disorders is ongoing in the quest to find anti-addiction vaccines to treat drug abuse. This article provides a systematic review of clinical trials that have been conducted on humans to evaluate the efficacy, safety, and abstinence rates of anti-addiction vaccines for different drugs, with useful results regarding cocaine and nicotine vaccines in particular; this study includes also a meta-analysis to establish the antibody-titer production following the nicotine vaccination, while a meta-analysis of cocaine vaccines was not performed due to the small number of included trials. The articles taken into consideration were published between 2002 and 2015, including searches through 2022.

Age Classification in Forensic Medicine Using Machine Learning Techniques.

Unlabelled: was to assess the capabilities of age determination (age group) at death using classification techniques by histomorphometric characteristics of osseous and cartilaginous tissue aging.

Materials And Methods: The study material was a database containing the findings of morphometric researches of osseous and cartilaginous tissue histologic specimens from 294 categorized male corpses aged 10-93 years. For data analysis and classification we used modern machine learning methods: k-NN, SVM, logistic regression, CatBoost, SGD, naive Bayes, random forest, nonlinear dimensionality reduction methods (t-SNE and uMAP), and recursive feature elimination for feature selection.

Validation of the Italian, European, North German, Malaysian, and South African black formulas on Cameriere method using panoramic radiographs in Kenyan children.

This study aimed to validate the accuracy of five different formulas based on the Cameriere method for age estimation in Kenyan children. We analyzed panoramic radiographs of 350 Kenyan children (184 males and 166 females) aged between 6 and 13 years. The dental development of each child was estimated by the analysis of the first seven left permanent teeth in the left mandible.

Age Assessment in Children and Adolescents by Measuring the Open Apices in Teeth: A New Sardinian Formula.

Age estimation in children is fundamental in both clinical and forensic fields. The aim of this study was to evaluate the accuracy of the Cameriere’s European and Italian formulae for age estimation in Sardinian children and adolescents, a genetically isolated population. A sample of 202 orthopantomograms of healthy Sardinian children and adolescents (100 females and 102 males) aged between 6 and 17 years was retrospectively evaluated.

A new analytical cut-off point for determining 18 years of age using MRI on medial clavicular epiphysis.

Evaluation of the ossification of the medial clavicular epiphysis plays a key role in forensic age estimation. The purpose of the present study was to assess a new numerical cut-off at the age of 18 years, taking into consideration Magnetic Resonance (MR) images of the medial clavicular epiphysis. We analyzed 163 MR scans of Italian subjects aged between 14 and 25 years.

Comparison of the third molar maturity index (I) between left and right lower third molars to assess the age of majority: a multi-ethnic study sample.

The diagnostic accuracy of the I to assess the legal age of 18 years has already been tested in several specific-population samples. The left lower third molar has been extensively used for discriminating between minors and adults. This research aimed to compare the usefulness of lower third molar maturity indexes, from both left and right side (IL and IR), in samples originating from four distinct continents in order to examine possible differences in their accuracy values.

Study of the ethnicity's influence on the third molar maturity index (I) for estimating age of majority in living juveniles and young adults.

Estimation of age of majority has important applications in the forensic daily practice because of the increasing demand for age estimates of unaccompanied minors. Diagnostic accuracy of I to assess legal adult age of 18 years has been already tested in several specific population samples. The aim of this work was to compare the available data about sensitivity and specificity of the third molar maturity index (I) from five different regional groups' radiographic samples to study possible ethnical difference.

Dental Age Assessment by I and I: Portuguese Legal Age Thresholds of 12 and 14 Year Olds.

Objective: Better understanding of dental age assessment may help in cases of age estimation in Forensic Clinics. The first aim was to provide essential information on method reliability for upcoming studies using dental age assessment by second molar index (I), and third molar index (I) for age estimation on legal ages of 12 - 14 years. The second aim was to document forensic method outcomes of the Demirjian method which has already been used in forensic clinic.

Cut-off for the legal ages in the Portuguese Population by Third Maturity Index: Measures of Accuracy.

Objectives: The aim of this study is to estimate the cut-off points for the Portuguese legal ages through the I, and to compare them with the methods of Demirjian, Nolla and Moorrees.

Design: The lower third molars were analyzed on 348 orthopantomography's aged between 12 and 23 years in a Portuguese Population. The images were analyzed by ImageJ and the cut-off points were calculated for the respective legal ages of 14, 16, 18 and 21 years old.

Evaluation of Cameriere and Willems age estimation methods in panoramic radiographs of Brazilian children.

The importance of age estimation in the forensic field is inherent to the process of establishing the biological profile of children, sub-adults and adults. The established profile might be useful for the identification of deceased victims or living individuals when it comes to age of legal interest. In parallel, age estimation is also investigated for clinical purposes, especially for the diagnosis of dental and bone maturation.