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A radio-odontometric analysis of sexual dimorphism in deciduous dentition
Maryam Paknahad1, Mehrdad Vossoughi2, Fatemeh Ahmadi Zeydabadi3
1Oral and Dental Disease Research Center, School of Dentistry, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran; Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Radiology, School of Dentistry, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran.
Objective:
It has been suggested that the level of sexual dimorphism in deciduous dentition is relatively lower than that in permanent dentition. However, in sub adult skeletal remains whose osseous morphological traits of the sex have not defined yet, predicting sex on the basis of odontometric features may be the most precise technique. The aim of the present study was to assess the degree of sexual dimorphism in marginal enamel, dentin and pulp dimensions of second molar deciduous teeth in a pediatric population.
Method And Materials:
The present study was conducted on bitewing radiographs of 64 males and 60 females. The greatest width of enamel, dentin and pulp on mandibular and maxillary second molar deciduous teeth were measured. Student's t-test and discriminant analysis were used to compare the differences in the odontometric parameters between females and males.
Results:
Among the second molar measurements, only the maxillary pulp width did significantly discriminate the sex groups. The accuracy of sex identification of a case based on deciduous second molar tooth was approximately 68%.
Conclusions:
The application of second molar deciduous teeth in sex prediction showed moderate level of sexual dimorphism. In this respect, the maxillary pulp width had the greatest amount of contribution in sex discrimination. Therefore, these odontometric traits, in conjunction with other skeletal features, can be used as a supplementary sexing tool for gender prediction in forensic anthropology.
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