Laboratory of Forensic Anthropology, Department of Life Sciences, Centre for Functional Ecology (CFE), University of Coimbra, Calçada Martim de Freitas, 3000-456, Coimbra, Portugal.
Instituto Nacional de Medicina Legal E Ciências Forenses, IP., Lisbon, Portugal.
Int J Legal Med. 2021 Nov;135(6):2595-2602. doi: 10.1007/s00414-021-02701-0. Epub 2021 Sep 22.
For identification of the unknown, the analysis of individualizing characteristics is a paramount procedure, which allows the reconciliation of antemortem with postmortem data. Worldwide, populations are commonly affected by tooth loss, leading to procedures of oral rehabilitation, such as dental prostheses. Although the potential of these devices for human identification is well known, the lack of marks or serial numbers as well as scarce systematic register on databases may difficult its use. The objective of this paper is to present and describe the cases with dentures and bridges of an identified osteological collection, the Colecção de Esqueletos Identificados Século XXI. All the individuals were macroscopically observed, and the cases presenting dental prostheses were registered. A total of thirty-one individuals (20 females; 11 males), ages 38 to 91 years, presented 49 dental prosthesis (removable or fixed), of various materials. The removable acrylic dentures (n = 42) were the most frequent. No identifying marks or production labels were found. This research reinforces two focal points: the value of studying and recognizing medical devices and their application for identification, and the relevance of identified skeletal collections for the advance of forensic science in the current multidisciplinary approach.
为了识别未知个体，分析个体特征是至关重要的程序，它允许将生前和死后的数据进行协调。在全球范围内，人群普遍受到牙齿缺失的影响，导致口腔修复程序，如假牙的出现。尽管这些设备在人类识别方面具有潜在的价值，但缺乏标记或序列号以及数据库中缺乏系统登记可能会使其使用变得困难。本文的目的是介绍和描述一个经鉴定的骨骼收藏中带有义齿和牙桥的案例，即 Colecção de Esqueletos Identificados Século XXI。所有个体都进行了宏观观察，并记录了带有义齿的案例。共有 31 名个体（20 名女性；11 名男性），年龄在 38 至 91 岁之间，共佩戴了 49 件义齿（可摘式或固定式），材料各异。最常见的是可摘式丙烯酸酯义齿（n=42）。未发现任何识别标记或生产标签。这项研究强调了两个重点：研究和识别医疗器械及其在识别中的应用的价值，以及在当前多学科方法中，经鉴定的骨骼收藏对法医学进步的重要性。
