Teledentistry and forensic odontology: Cross-sectional observational comparative pilot study

Area of Science:

• Forensic science
• Forensic dentistry
• Digital imaging in forensics

Background:

• Forensic dentistry utilizes dental records for identification.
• Emerging digital tools are revolutionizing forensic identification techniques.
• Intra-oral cameras present a novel approach for remote data collection in forensic odontology.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the diagnostic quality of remote post-mortem odontograms.
• To assess the utility of intra-oral camera videos for establishing a deceased's odontogram.
• To compare digital remote analysis with the standard clinical examination (gold standard).

Main Methods:

• A study involving 25 deceased patients at the University Hospital of Montpellier.
• Data collection included a gold standard clinical examination and video recording using a Soprocare® intra-oral camera.
• Two separate dental surgeons completed clinical files for odontogram creation, one for the gold standard and one for remote analysis.

Main Results:

• The intra-oral camera achieved a sensitivity of 0.97 for identifying present teeth.
• Diagnostic performance for detecting missing teeth showed a positive predictive value (PPV) of 97.9% and a negative predictive value (NPV) of 98.2%.
• Ease of handling the digital tool improved with practitioner experience.

Conclusions:

• The Soprocare® intra-oral camera demonstrates acceptable diagnostic validity for creating post-mortem odontograms.
• The technology effectively detects fundamental dental elements for identification.
• Further improvements are needed to optimize camera use for data collection efficiency.