Department of Forensic Medicine and Toxicology, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Jodhpur, 342005, India.
School of Forensic Sciences, National Forensic Sciences University, Tripura, 799001, India.
Naturwissenschaften. 2023 May 18;110(3):21. doi: 10.1007/s00114-023-01851-y.
Age estimation constitutes an important facet of human identification within forensic, bioarchaeological, repatriation, and humanitarian contexts. Within the human skeletal framework, the pubic symphysis comprises one of the more commonly utilized structures for age estimation. The present investigation was aimed at establishing the applicability of the McKern-Stewart pubic symphyseal age estimation method in males and females of an Indian population, an aspect previously unreported. Three hundred and eighty clinical CT scans of the pubic symphysis were collected and scored in accordance with the McKern-Stewart method. An overall accuracy of 68.90% was obtained on applying the method to males, demonstrating a limited applicability of the method in its primal form. Subsequently, Bayesian analysis was undertaken to enable accurate age estimation from individual components in both sexes. Bayesian parameters obtained with females suggest that McKern-Stewart's components fail to accommodate for age-related changes within the female pubic bone. Improved accuracy percentages and reduced inaccuracy values were obtained with Bayesian analysis in males. With females, the error computations were high. Weighted summary age models were utilized for multivariate age estimation, and furnished inaccuracy values of 11.51 years (males) and 17.92 years (females). Error computations obtained with descriptive analysis, Bayesian analysis, and principal component analysis demonstrate the limited applicability of McKern-Stewart's components in generating accurate age profiles for Indian males and females. The onset and progression of age-related changes within the male and female pubic bone may be of interest to biological anthropologists and anatomists involved in exploring the underlying basis for aging.
年龄估测是法医学、生物考古学、遣返和人道主义领域进行人类身份鉴定的一个重要方面。在人类骨骼结构中，耻骨联合是用于年龄估测的较常用结构之一。本研究旨在确定 McKern-Stewart 耻骨联合年龄估测方法在印度人群中男性和女性中的适用性，这是以前未曾报道过的。收集了 380 例耻骨联合的临床 CT 扫描，并按照 McKern-Stewart 方法进行评分。该方法在男性中的总体准确率为 68.90%，表明该方法在原始形式下的适用性有限。随后，进行了贝叶斯分析，以实现两性个体成分的准确年龄估测。从女性获得的贝叶斯参数表明，McKern-Stewart 的成分未能适应女性耻骨的年龄相关变化。贝叶斯分析在男性中获得了更高的准确率百分比和更低的不准确性值。对于女性，误差计算值较高。使用加权综合年龄模型进行多元年龄估测，结果为男性提供了 11.51 年的不准确性值（男性）和 17.92 年的不准确性值（女性）。描述性分析、贝叶斯分析和主成分分析的误差计算表明，McKern-Stewart 的成分在为印度男性和女性生成准确的年龄曲线方面适用性有限。男性和女性耻骨中年龄相关变化的开始和进展可能会引起从事探索衰老基础的生物人类学家和解剖学家的兴趣。
