[Determination of skeletal sex using discriminant analysis of ulnar measurements]

Twelve ulnar measurements take on a series of 80 skeletons (40 male, 40 female) of a known Southern Italian population have been used in 9 combinations to produce discriminant functions for skeletal sex determination. The highest percentage of correct sex classification (95%) was obtained by the association of the minimum circumference and the maximal length. Using other four discriminant functions sex is correctly identified in 93.75% of the sample; in addition two of these functions, obtained by the associations of: minimum circumference and distal epiphyseal breadth, height of proximal articular surface, superior breadth and corio-olecranic distance, allowed to have a sex determination even by fragmented ulnae. For each discriminant function proposed, coefficients of discrimination, section points, male and female centroid and the percentage of misclassification are reported. Practical applications of this method will be certainly of aid in sexual identification in case of forensic interest.