Can dental arch size be used to determine the age of the perpetrator of a bite injury?

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Author(s)
NANGIA, Annu
SOON, Alistair
Forrest, Alex Stewart
Griffith University Author(s)
Year published
2014
Metadata
Show full item recordAbstract
A question commonly asked by Investigators is whether or not a bite mark injury can be ascribed to a child or to an adult on the basis of its apparent size. We review the literature in relation to this question, and demonstrate that there is a wide variation in arch sizes in both males and females in both adult and juvenile cohorts. Because some of these ranges overlap, there is great danger in reaching some conclusions without further information to aid the decision-making process. We conclude that arch measurement alone is not a sufficient characteristic on which to base an opinion.A question commonly asked by Investigators is whether or not a bite mark injury can be ascribed to a child or to an adult on the basis of its apparent size. We review the literature in relation to this question, and demonstrate that there is a wide variation in arch sizes in both males and females in both adult and juvenile cohorts. Because some of these ranges overlap, there is great danger in reaching some conclusions without further information to aid the decision-making process. We conclude that arch measurement alone is not a sufficient characteristic on which to base an opinion.
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Conference Title
Can dental arch size be used to determine the age of the perpetrator of a bite injury?
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Copyright Statement
© The Author(s) 2014. The attached file is reproduced here in accordance with the copyright policy of the publisher. For information about this conference please refer to the conference’s website or contact the authors.
Subject
Dentistry not elsewhere classified