Estimating stature from tibia length: a comparison of methods

Most forensic and biological anthropological studies use the stature-estimation formulae developed by Trotter and Gleser. In recent decades, studies of morphological differences between populations have indicated that population-specific formulae are necessary to obtain accurate estimates. A number of equations have been devised for the Turkish population. Previously, we introduced a "general formula" and three "stature-group-specific formulae" based on tibial length. The purpose of the present study was to determine whether formulae in the literature are suitable for estimating height in the Turkish population. To make this assessment, we compared the accuracy of formulae designed for Turkish people to the accuracy of formulae devised for other populations. We also evaluated the accuracy in short, medium, and tall height groupings. The formulae were tested on 110 healthy Turkish male adults, with estimated height compared to true height in each case. Analysis showed that the Trotter-Gleser formula for Mongoloids was most accurate for estimating stature in the study group as a whole. The formulae of Sağir for the Turkish population and our previously published "general formula" were the next most accurate methods, respectively. When the 110 subjects were categorized as short (1652 mm and below), medium (1653 to 1840 mm), and tall (1841 and above), the stature-group-specific formulae calculated in the present study were more accurate than all other equations for subjects at the height extremes. The results of this study indicate that stature-group-specific formulae are more reliable for forensic cases.