INTRODUCTIONTo the best of our knowledge, the sexually dimorphic characteristics of the craniofacial region among the South Indian population are not available in the current literature. We aimed to determine these characteristics using discriminant function analysis.

METHODSA total of 80 recent skulls (40 male, 40 female) from the Department of Anatomy, Yenepoya Medical College, Yenepoya University, Karnataka, India, were analysed. Ten craniofacial parameters were measured and subjected to univariate and multivariate statistical analyses using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences version 13.0.

RESULTSStatistical analyses revealed that the differences in the bizygomatic, orbital and biorbital breadths of males and females were significant (p < 0.05). Direct method gave an accuracy of 68.8% for sex determination. In stepwise analysis, bizygomatic breadth and upper facial height were selected, giving a 65.0% accuracy for sex prediction.

CONCLUSIONCraniofacial parameters are sexually dimorphic. The present study established several features of craniofacial morphometry that can be used for sex determination among the South Indian population. The findings of the present study serve as a foundation for future studies that aim to compare craniofacial parameters among various ethnic groups in South India.

Adult ; Female ; Humans ; India ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Sex Characteristics ; Sex Determination by Skeleton ; methods ; Skull ; anatomy & histology

Sex determination is the preliminary step in every forensic investigation and the hard palate assumes significance in cranial sexing in cases involving burns and explosions due to its resistant nature and secluded location. This study analyzes the sexing potential of incisive foramen to posterior nasal spine length, palatine process of maxilla length, horizontal plate of palatine bone length and transverse length between the greater palatine foramina. The study deviates from the conventional method of measuring the maxillo-alveolar length and breadth as the dimensions considered in this study are more heat resistant and useful in situations with damaged alveolar margins. The study involves 50 male and 50 female adult dry skulls of Indian ethnic group. The dimensions measured were statistically analyzed using Student's t test, binary logistic regression and receiver operating characteristic curve. It was observed that the incisive foramen to posterior nasal spine length is a definite sex marker with sex predictability of 87.2%. The palatine process of maxilla length with 66.8% sex predictability and the horizontal plate of palatine bone length with 71.9% sex predictability cannot be relied upon as definite sex markers. The transverse length between the greater palatine foramina is statistically insignificant in sexing crania (P=0.318). Considering a significant overlap of values in both the sexes the palatal dimensions singularly cannot be relied upon for sexing. Nevertheless, considering the high sex predictability of incisive foramen to posterior nasal spine length this dimension can definitely be used to supplement other sexing evidence available to precisely conclude the cranial sex.
Adult ; Burns ; Ethnic Groups ; Explosions ; Female ; Forensic Anthropology ; Hot Temperature ; Humans* ; Logistic Models* ; Male ; Maxilla ; Methods ; Palate, Hard* ; ROC Curve ; Skull ; Spine