Utility of the Frontonasal Suture for Estimating Age at Death in Human Skeletal Remains

• NCJ Number: 243735
• Journal: Journal of Forensic Sciences Volume: 58 Issue: 1 Dated: January 2013 Pages: 104-108
• Author(s): Helen S. Alesbury, B.S.; Douglas H. Ubelaker, Ph.D.; Robin Bernstein, Ph.D.
• Date Published: January 2013
• Length: 5 pages
• Publication Format: Article
• Publication Type: Report (Technical Assistance)
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

This project evaluated the utility of the frontonasal suture for estimating age at death.

Abstract

This project evaluated the utility of the frontonasal suture for estimating age at death. Utilizing human remains of known age at death with varying degrees of fusion, curated at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City and the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of Natural History in Washington, DC, data were collected from the ectocranial surface of 522 crania; 68 of these were sagittally sectioned, allowing collection of internal data and observation of suture closure through the bone. Degree of ectocranial suture closure does not significantly predict age, even when sex and ancestry are accounted for. Suture closure progression data were converted into a Hershkovitz ratio (sum of the measurement of open portion divided by the total suture length), and regression models demonstrate that the effect of age accounts for only 13 percent of variation in suture closure. Abstract published by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons.