Development of individual identification method using thoracic vertebral features as biometric fingerprints

Area of Science:

• Forensic anthropology
• Biometrics
• Radiology

Background:

• Individual identification of deceased individuals is crucial after disasters or accidents.
• Current methods like DNA and dental records can be compromised by decomposition or damage.
• A need exists for alternative, robust biometric identification methods.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and validate a new individual identification method using thoracic vertebral features.
• To establish thoracic vertebrae as a reliable biological fingerprint for postmortem identification.

Main Methods:

• Measurements of thoracic vertebrae (T1-12) dimensions (height, width, depth) were taken from postmortem and antemortem images.
• A database was created using these measurements.
• Euclidean or modified Hausdorff distances were calculated in a 3D feature space to match individuals; the smallest distance indicated a match.

Main Results:

• The thoracic vertebrae measurement method demonstrated 100% accuracy in identifying individuals.
• Matching was performed by comparing 82 postmortem cases against 702 antemortem images.
• The smallest calculated distance reliably identified the correct individual.

Conclusions:

• Thoracic vertebral features provide a highly accurate biological fingerprint for individual identification.
• This method offers a viable alternative when traditional identification methods are not feasible.
• The technique shows significant potential for forensic identification applications.