Center for Research in Neuropsychology and Cognitive and Behavioral Intervention (CINEICC), Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, Universidade de Coimbra, 3000-115 Coimbra, Portugal.
School of Medicine and Dentistry, Health Research Institute Foundation of Santiago (FIDIS), Universidad de Santiago de Compostela, 15703 Santiago de Compostela, Spain.
Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2022 Oct 4;19(19):12706. doi: 10.3390/ijerph191912706.
Estimation of children's chronological age is highly important in human and forensic sciences. The Demirjian method has been reported as accurate for this purpose. The literature review shows some evidence that the accuracy of estimating chronological age via the Demirjian standards is not a straightforward process. The objective of this research is to analyze the reliability of the Demirjian standards in Portuguese and Spanish children and adolescents and adapt it to include sex and group age as contingent factors.
Orthopantomographs of 574 Portuguese and Spanish male and female children and adolescents were employed to test the reliability of the Demirjian method. After testing for inter-rater consistency and age estimation using the Demirjian standards, multiple regression analysis was performed controlling for sex and age group.
The Demirjian standards overestimated chronological age for both sexes, mainly for females. Through the development of regression functions, more detailed dental age estimation was performed. The predictive capacities of the Demirjian method and the significant teeth varied as a function of children's age. The Demirjian global standard predicted over 65% of the variance of the chronological age. Taking a tooth-by-tooth approach, the predictive ability increased by over 70%.
The accuracy of estimating chronological age via the Demirjian method is not as reliable as it might appear, judging from the results found according to age group and according to sex crossed with age group.
在人类和法医学中，估计儿童的实际年龄非常重要。Demirjian 方法已被证明可用于此目的。文献综述表明，有一些证据表明，通过 Demirjian 标准来估计实际年龄的准确性并不是一个简单的过程。本研究的目的是分析 Demirjian 标准在葡萄牙和西班牙儿童和青少年中的可靠性，并将其适应包括性别和年龄组作为偶然因素。
使用 574 名葡萄牙和西班牙男女儿童和青少年的全景片来测试 Demirjian 方法的可靠性。在使用 Demirjian 标准进行了组内一致性和年龄估计测试之后，进行了多元回归分析，以控制性别和年龄组。
Demirjian 标准高估了两性的实际年龄，尤其是女性。通过开发回归函数，可以进行更详细的牙齿年龄估计。Demirjian 方法的预测能力和重要牙齿随儿童年龄的变化而变化。Demirjian 总体标准预测了实际年龄的 65%以上的方差。采用逐牙分析，预测能力提高了 70%以上。
根据年龄组和性别与年龄组交叉的结果判断，通过 Demirjian 方法估计实际年龄的准确性并不像看起来那样可靠。
