NCJ Number
218489
Journal
Journal of Forensic Sciences Volume: 52 Issue: 3 Dated: May 2007 Pages: 678-683
Date Published
May 2007
Length
6 pages
Annotation
This study assessed the validity of the modified Kim's scoring system as a method of recording the degree of occlusal tooth wear as a means of estimating chronological age, using 1,092 pairs of maxillary and mandibular full-arch casts from Korean adults.
Abstract
Findings show that the modified Kim's scoring system had excellent reliability in showing that occlusal tooth wear had a positive correlation with age. Tooth-wear scores of all teeth except the two lower central incisors were higher in males than in females. Estimated ages were within 5 years of actual ages in 63.5 percent of males and 64 percent of females. The accuracy of age estimation improved when the subjects were divided into two age groups and data were reanalyzed. The author concludes that the data from the 1,092 individuals in this study can be used as a standard for age estimation of Korean adults. The degree of occlusal tooth wear was assessed with the naked eye or a magnifying glass under a light, using the modified Kim's scoring system. The intraexaminer and interexaminer reliabilities of the original version of Kim's scoring system were proven in a previous study. The current study modified the scoring system by changing the selection of teeth and degree classifications. Anterior teeth and their respective scores were included. Researchers included unsound, restored, or missing teeth on which occlusal tooth wear could not be determined, and then they added the scores for those teeth. Scoring was performed by two trained examiners after a mutual calibration procedure. Two examiners scored occlusal tooth wear by using casts of 30 matched individuals independently to test interexaminer agreement. The statistical analysis procedure is described. 6 tables and 36 references