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LAB PRACTICUM
STATURE ESTIMATION
The stature or height of an individual is useful information for making forensic identifications. Before estimating stature, one must determine the race, sex, and age of the individual as stature varies with the variables. Stature estimates are estimates. They are not exact and should always be expressed with a range of error.
Stature estimates are usually calculated in centimeters. An individual who is 5 feet tall is about 152.4 cm tall (5 ft x 12 in/ft x 2.54 cm/in = 152.40 cm).
Stature is estimated by comparing the lengths of certain bones to tables of published data or by plugging lengths into published regression formulas, such as ForDisc 2.0. The most commonly used bones for stature estimation of incomplete remains are the long bones (femur, tibia, fibula, humerus, ulna, radius), but short bones of the hands and feet may also be used. The use of two or more bones to estimate the stature of an individual improves the accuracy. The primary source for measurement points of the long bones listed in the chart given below for this class are taken from Bass (1994) and Moore-Jansen et al. (1994).
Potential stature refers to the stature of an individual who has not undergone skeletal changes associated with the aging process. Most people who are less than 30 years old at the time of death have not undergone these changes.
Living stature refers to the stature of an individual who has undergone degenerative changes associated with the aging process which results in a decrease in stature. Most people who are 30 years old or older at the time of death have undergone some of these changes.
Thus, to account for the loss of height associated with aging, one must subtract from the stature estimates of older individuals. This stature estimate is dependant upon the estimate of age of the individual. That estimated age is plugged into the following equation, the answer of which is subtracted from the stature estimate: 0.06 * (age - 30) cm. So, an individual who is 50 years old will likely have lost 1.20 cm of height (0.06 * 50-30 cm) due to the aging process.
Table 1: Bone length and stature tables; published regression formulas for stature estimation (Bass 1994).
|
BONE |
RACE |
MALE EQUATION |
FEMALE EQUATION |
|
Femur |
Caucasoid |
2.32 * femur + 65.53 ± 3.94 cm |
2.47 * femur + 54.10 ± 3.72 cm |
|
Femur |
Negroid |
2.10 * femur + 72.22 ± 3.91 cm |
2.28 * femur + 59.76 ± 3.41 cm |
|
Femur |
Mongoloid |
2.15 * femur + 72.57 ± 3.80 cm |
|
|
Tibia |
Caucasoid |
2.42 * tibia + 81.93 ± 4.00 cm |
2.90 * tibia + 61.53 ± 3.66 cm |
|
Tibia |
Negroid |
2.19 * tibia + 85.36 ± 3.96 cm |
2.45 * tibia + 72.56 ± 3.70 cm |
|
Tibia |
Mongoloid |
2.39 * tibia + 81.45 ± 3.24 cm |
|
|
Fibula |
Caucasoid |
2.60 * fibula + 75.50 ± 3.86 cm |
2.93 * fibula + 59.61 ± 3.57 cm |
|
Fibula |
Negroid |
2.34 * fibula + 80.07 ± 4.02 cm |
2.49 * fibula + 70.90 ± 3.80 cm |
|
Fibula |
Mongoloid |
2.40 * fibula + 80.56 ± 3.24 cm |
|
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Humerus |
Caucasoid |
2.89 * humerus + 78.10 ± 4.57 cm |
3.36 * humerus + 57.97 ± 4.45 cm |
|
Humerus |
Negroid |
2.88 * humerus + 75.48 ± 4.23 cm |
3.08 * humerus + 64.67 ± 4.25 cm |
|
Humerus |
Mongoloid |
2.68 * humerus + 83.19 ± 4.16 cm |
|
|
Ulna |
Caucasoid |
3.76 * ulna + 75.55 ± 4.72 cm |
4.27 * ulna + 57.76 ± 4.30 cm |
|
Ulna |
Negroid |
3.20 * ulna + 82.77 ± 4.74 cm |
3.31 * ulna + 75.38 ± 4.83 cm |
|
Ulna |
Mongoloid |
3.48 * ulna + 77.45 ± 4.66 cm |
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Radius |
Caucasoid |
3.79 * radius + 79.42 ± 4.66 cm |
4.74 * radius + 54.93 ± 4.24 cm |
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Radius |
Negroid |
3.32 * radius + 85.43 ± 4.57 cm |
3.67 * radius + 71.79 ± 4.59 cm |
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Radius |
Mongoloid |
3.54 * radius + 82.00 ± 4.60 cm |
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| V 3.2 Last Updated Summer 2006 Copyright April Garwin 2001-2006 All Rights Reserved |