Reichs K J
Department of Sociology and Anthropology, University of North Carolina, Charlotte.
J Forensic Sci. 1989 Jan;34(1):263-73.
The union of the cranial sutures can follow a somewhat erratic course. While it is recognized that this can cause inaccuracies in estimating age at death, deviant closure patterns can influence assessments other than age. Premature or eccentrically fusing sutures can alter cranial growth and, therefore, shape. Such modified growth vectors can significantly influence metric analysis. A case is described in which precocious synostosis of the sagittal suture complicated determination of sex in a set of skeletalized remains. Features of the cranium and post-cranial skeleton indicated the individual was male, while the mandible, both metrically and morphologically, appeared to have come from a female. This led to the question of commingling. Techniques are described which were used to resolve these issues.
颅骨缝的愈合过程可能会有些不规则。虽然人们认识到这可能会导致在估计死亡年龄时出现不准确的情况，但异常的闭合模式可能会影响除年龄之外的其他评估。过早或异常融合的颅骨缝会改变颅骨的生长，进而影响其形状。这种改变后的生长向量会对测量分析产生重大影响。本文描述了一个案例，矢状缝过早闭合使一组骨骼遗骸的性别判定变得复杂。颅骨和颅后骨骼的特征表明该个体为男性，而从测量和形态学角度看，下颌骨似乎来自女性。这就引发了骨骼混合的问题。文中介绍了用于解决这些问题的技术。
