Albernaz Neves João, Antunes-Ferreira Nathalie, Machado Vanessa, Botelho João, Proença Luís, Quintas Alexandre, Sintra Delgado Ana, Mendes José João
Clinical Research Unit (CRU), Centro de Investigação Interdisciplinar Egas Moniz (CiiEM), Egas Moniz, CRL, 2829-511 Monte de Caparica, Portugal.
Laboratório de Ciências Forenses e Psicológicas Egas Moniz (LCFPEM), Centro de Investigação Interdisciplinar Egas Moniz (CiiEM), Egas Moniz, CRL, 2829-511 Monte de Caparica, Portugal.
J Pers Med. 2022 May 13;12(5):787. doi: 10.3390/jpm12050787.
Sex determination in forensic dentistry is a major step towards postmortem profiling. The most widely recognized method is DNA, yet its application in the dental field of forensic sciences is still impractical. Depending on the conditions of the remains, teeth are often the only surviving organ. Some systematic reviews (SRs) have been recently produced; hence this umbrella review critically assesses their level of evidence and provides an overall comprehensive view. An electronic database search was conducted in four databases (PubMed, Cochrane, Web of Science, and LILACS) and three grey search engines up to December 2021, focusing on SRs of sex determination through forensic dentistry procedures. The methodological quality of the SRs was analyzed using the measurement tool to assess SRs criteria (AMSTAR2). Five SRs were included, two of critically low quality and three of low quality. The SRs posited that canines are the most dimorphic teeth; oral tissue remnants are a rich source for sex determination by DNA tracing; and artificial intelligence tools demonstrate high potential in forensic dentistry. The quality of evidence on sex determination using dental approaches was rated as low. Well-designed clinical trials and high standard systematic reviews are essential to corroborate the accuracy of the different procedures of sex determination in forensic dentistry.
法医牙科学中的性别鉴定是死后特征分析的重要一步。最广为人知的方法是DNA，但它在法医科学牙科领域的应用仍然不切实际。根据遗体的状况，牙齿往往是唯一留存的器官。最近已经产生了一些系统评价（SRs）；因此，本综合性评价批判性地评估了它们的证据水平，并提供了一个全面的总体观点。截至2021年12月，在四个数据库（PubMed、Cochrane、科学网和LILACS）和三个灰色搜索引擎中进行了电子数据库检索，重点是通过法医牙科学程序进行性别鉴定的系统评价。使用评估系统评价标准的测量工具（AMSTAR2）分析了系统评价的方法学质量。纳入了五项系统评价，两项质量极低，三项质量低。这些系统评价认为，犬齿是两性差异最大的牙齿；口腔组织残余物是通过DNA追踪进行性别鉴定的丰富来源；人工智能工具在法医牙科学中显示出很高的潜力。使用牙科方法进行性别鉴定的证据质量被评为低。精心设计的临床试验和高标准的系统评价对于证实法医牙科学中不同性别鉴定程序的准确性至关重要。
