Age estimation in Portuguese population: The application of the London atlas of tooth development and eruption.

Chronological age estimation from the dental parameters is becoming increasingly important. The London atlas of tooth development is the most recent developed method and represents a modification of the previous older methods. The aim of this study was to evaluate the accuracy of the London atlas for the dental age estimation in the Portuguese population. The study sample included 736 radiographic images (498 females and 238 males) of Portuguese origin, patients of Dental Clinic of Superior Institute of Health Sciences Egas Moniz and Dental Medicine Faculty, University of Lisbon. The age range of the individuals was between 3 and 24 years. Estimated age was compared with the chronological age using the paired t-test. The results showed that there was no statistically significant difference between left and right side of the jaw (p>0.05). Both sides showed an average overestimation of age by one month approximately. Moreover, the significant difference between chronological and estimated age was not observed in the females. However, the significant difference was observed in a sample coming from males (right: p=0.008; left: p=0.003). Our results showed that the London atlas can be potentially used as a tool for age estimation. However, the difference between sexes clearly suggests that separate charts should be made for each sex. Further studies, which will have as a final goal the development of a new method for age estimation using dental parameters, are needed.