Comparison of cheiloscopy, odontometric, and facial index for sex determination in forensic dentistry

BACKGROUND: The “gender determination” which is an important human identification procedure not only helps in establishing the biological profile from skeletal and dental remains but also in facial reconstruction of unidentified victims. AIM: The aim of this study is to analyze predominant types of lip prints (cheiloscopy), accuracy of mandibular canine index (MCI) (odontometric), and facial index in the study population and to identify whether any correlation among the above parameters could help forensic dentistry in solving crimes. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A pilot study was conducted in 100 individuals, 50 males and 50 females aged between 20 and 25 years. For each individual, the lip prints, MCI, and facial index measurements were recorded on the same day analyzed by two observers. All the analysis was done using SPSS version 14 assessed using t-test and Chi-square test. RESULTS: Type II pattern of lip prints is observed as common pattern among male and female. There is no significant difference in Odontometric analysis. The mean value of facial index analysis in both genders shows highly significant. CONCLUSION: A large-scale study is required in order to validate our results to arrive at definitive results and value.