An Alternative Method to Using a Mandibulometer.

Area of Science:

• Forensic Anthropology
• Anthropometry
• Medical Imaging

Background:

• Mandibular measurements (length, angle, ramus height) are crucial for forensic evaluation of skeletal remains.
• Traditional methods require specialized, costly instruments like the mandibulometer.
• Accessibility to these measurements is limited for practitioners without specialized equipment or when working with digital models.

Purpose of the Study:

• To introduce and validate a novel, cost-effective method for obtaining key mandibular measurements from images.
• To enable forensic practitioners to collect and utilize these measurements using readily available tools and digital data.
• To assess the accuracy and reliability of image-based measurements compared to traditional mandibulometer use.

Main Methods:

• Measurements were taken from photographs and 3D surface scan images of 45 mandibles.
• A mandibulometer was used as the gold standard for comparison.
• Intra- and inter-observer reliability analyses were conducted over ten trials.

Main Results:

• All technical error of measurement (TEM) values were below 2 mm across all methods and observers.
• Relative TEM values were below 2% for most measurements, with slight exceptions for mandibular length and ramus height from photographs.
• The error rates were comparable to those reported for mandibulometer use.

Conclusions:

• The proposed image-based method for mandibular measurements is accurate and reliable.
• This technique offers a practical alternative for forensic anthropologists, especially those lacking access to a mandibulometer or working with 3D imaging data.
• The findings support the widespread adoption of this accessible method in forensic anthropology.