Forensic age estimation in adults by pubic bone mineral density using multidetector computed tomography

Radiology plays a crucial role in forensic anthropology for age estimation. However, most studies rely on morphological methods. This study aims to investigate the feasibility of using pubic bone mineral density (BMD) as a new age estimation method in the Chinese population. 468 pubic bone CT scans from living individuals in a Chinese hospital aged 18 to 87 years old were used to measure pubic BMD. The BMD of the bilateral pubic bone was measured using the Mimics software on cross-sectional CT images and the mean BMD of the bilateral pubic bone was also calculated. Regression analysis was performed to assess the correlation between pubic BMD and chronological age and to develop mathematical models for age estimation. We evaluated the accuracy of the best regression model using an independent validation sample by calculating the mean absolute error (MAE). Among all established models, the cubic regression model had the highest R² value in both genders, with R² = 0.550 for males and R² = 0.634 for females. The results of the best model test showed that the MAE for predicting age using pubic BMD was 8.66 years in males and 7.69 years in females. This study highlights the potential of pubic BMD as a useful objective indicator for adult age estimation and could be used as an alternative in forensic practice when other better indicators are lacking.