Biological Sex
Features of male and female skulls: size and architecture differences, see pg. 187
Size
Mastoid (side chin protrusion)
Browridge
Frontal
Nuchal area (nape)
Supraorbital margin (brow margin)
Chin
Males
Large, rugged
Large
Large
Slanted
Rugged with hook
Rounded
Broad
Females
Small, smooth
Nonprojecting (in line with skull)
Small or none
High, rounded
Smooth, rarely hook
sharp
pointed
Features of male and female pelvis: see pg. 179
Size
Illium
Pelvic inlet
Pubic shape
Subpubic angle
Obturator foramen
Greater sciatic notch
Preauricular sulcus (groove on illium)
Males
Large and rugged
High and vertical
Heart shaped
Narrow and rectangular
V shaped, narrow
Large and ovid
Narrow
Rare
Females
Small and gracile
Low and flat
Circular/oval
Broad and square
U shaped, wider
Small and triangular
Wide
Well developed
Sacrum shape
Long and narrow
Short and broad
Phenice method:
Ventral arc ridge on pubis curves down to the ramus in females leaving inner surface
untouched by arc
Subpubic concatvity of ischopubic ramusmakes the subpubic angle rounded or sharp
Medical aspect of the ischopubic ramuswide and dull in males, sharp in femalesleast reliable of all Phenice methods
Ischiopubic index: Washburn (1948)needs two measurements: pubis length and ischium
length (see diagram)
Divide pubic length by ischium length and creating a percentage with outcome
Longer bones typically mean female while an index value below ___ means ___
Sex calculation using descriminant: 11 measurements of the skull
Code
Definition
ML
Maximum length of skull (browridge to nape)
MB
Maximum breadth of skull above supramastoid crest (side of head to side across forehead)
BaBr
Basion to bregma (basion suture at top of skull down to top of ear opening)
BaNa
Basion to nasion (ear opening to bridge of nose)
BB
Maximum width across zygomatic arches (cheekbone to cheekbone)
BaPr
Basion to prosthion (opening of foramen magnum across palate to front teeth gums)
NaAl
Nasion to lowest point on alveolar border (bridge to front teeth gums)
PB
Maximum breadth of the palate (back molar to back molar)
LM
Length of mastoid process while on Frankfort plane
Enter values into discriminant functions in tables to determine sex and confidence for outcome
Problems with determining sex: more successful with pelvis than skull
Age at Death
Intramembraneous bone growth: cartilage is not used, messenchyme osteoblasts which develop
lengthen cells
in children: where bone tissue is created,
In adults: healing of bone fractures, formation of head bones
Cartilaginious growth: formation of long bones, length in long bones and fracture healing, cartilage
present
Continuous cell division of chondrocytes, primary centers of ossification
Calculate fetal age by femur chart:
Calculate femur length from another long bone:
Bone
Percentage
of Femur
Tibia
89.9
Fibula
84.6
Methods for determining age at death for adults:
Humerus 88.6
Tooth loss, sutures devlop over time,
Ulna
84.6
pubic symphses: pubic face undergoes ridges and furrows filling in
to flat to pitted/eroded
Radius
73.8
ventral margin develops a bevel and a rampart, ridges degenerate and furrows fill in
dorsal margin: furrows fill and form a plateau, margins in general become more defined
ossific nodules form over time, rims, lipping
auricular sufaces: apex, arcuate line, retroauricular area
transverse organization: forms billows
texture of bone: granular to coarse
increase in porosity
retroaruricular smoth to coarse with ossifications
apex thinness thickens with age
sternal rib ends:
surface coarser over age
end surface contour has more indentations
end rim rounded parts thin out and sharpen over time
countouring gets more ragged with age to projecting fingers of bone
cranial sutures: options are open, minimal, significant and obliteration
Methods for determining a.a.d. for children:
Long bone length: pro: measuring and comparing ratios and inputting values into given charts,
con: gets less reliable the farther away from birth the subject is (cornucopia shape)
union of centers of ossification: pro: bone deposits according to schedule
con: fragile parts hard to find in subjects, only useful up to 10 years
skull: union of fontanels in the bregma, pterion, asterion and lambda,
metopic suture (dividing frontal) closes
Over time
mandible: right and left sides fuse
atlas: right and left sides fuse
axis: four parts (body, dens, right and left halves of arc)
tooth formation: depositon from cusps to roots, enamel to dentin, has calcifying scheme
epiphyseal union: process starts after the centers of ossification have fused, begins with
cartilage then creates bony ends.
Epiphyses on long bones, ribs, metacarpal and metarsal, bottom 22 vertabrae
Problems with determining age at death:
Ancestry
Structure
White
Black
Asain
Nose
High root bridge, sharp
sill, narrow width
Low rounded root,
bridge, guttered spine,
wide width
Low ridged root and
bridge, small flat,sharp
spin, medium width
Face
Straight profile, narrow,
angular obits, receding
eye border
Projecting profile,
narrow shape,
rectangular orbits,
receding eye border
Intermediate profile,
wide, rounded orbits,
projecting lower eye
border
Vault
Heavy browridges,
rugged muscle marks,
simple sutures
Small browridges,
smooth muscle marks,
simple sutures
Small browridges,
smooth muscle marks,
complex sutures
Jaws and Teeth
Small jaw, parabolic
palate, spatulate incisors
Large jaw, hyperbolic
palate, spatulate incisors
Large jaw, elliptical
palate, shoveled incisors
Platymeric index of femur: shape of distal to lesser trochanter in femur, anterior-posterior (A-P), mediallateral (M-L) measurements. Native Americans have flatter front to back than other races
PI= (A-P)/(M-L) * 100
Nasal index: width at three different locations, geiht as least forward projection taken by simometer
Height divided by width to find percent (h1 / w1)
Trauma
Antemortem: before death, partial healing
Perimortem: around time of death
Postmortem: occurring after death
Complete fracture: displacement of bone, hinge at times
Comminuted fracture: multiple bone fragments
Pathological fracture: fracture of already weakened bone from disease
Stress fracture: overuse
Hematoma: bruise
Fracture healing stages: connective fibers  callus of fibrous bone  replace by lamellar bone
eventually
Sharp force trauma and features:compression or shearing force, punctures or chop marks, incisions in
cortex, potential for complete discontinuity or infractions
Blunt force trauma and features:wide area of impact, compression bending and shearing dynamically
throughout bone, discontinuities and fracture lines
Projectile trauma: complete discontinuity with displacement and fracture lines, compressive force
Parry fracture: ulna, self defense, inward displacement
Colles’ fracture: shearing in distal radius, catching fall
…
Individualization
Handedness: generally larger and more modified bones in arm of preference
Gelnoid beveling, gelnoid posterior deflection (backwards angle), length of upper limb bone
(humerus) distal humerus width (elbow), arthritic development in elbow
MSM:
Insertion area:
Cortical defect:
Hypertrophy: area of attachement in enlarged as a result of loading
Lytic: abnormal loss of bone (erosion)
Proliferative: excess deposits of bone
Robusticity: thickness of bonjes is consistent throughout the skeleton
Osteoarthritis and indicator: degenerative joint and bone disease, loss of cartilage possible muscle
atrophy and lax ligaments
Eburnation: regrowth of ivory-like bone after loss from osteoarthritis
Osteophyte: bone spurs along joints
Osteophytosis:
Schmorl’s node: protrusion of veterbal discs into the vertebral body, often kills bone and causes
inflammation
Stress/fatigue fracture: incomplete bone fracture caused by unsusual or repeated stress, crack in bone
Necrosis: premature death of cells and living tissue, caused by ecternal factors (infection, toxin, trauma)
Spondylolysis: stress fracture/defect in vertebrae, usually in the lumbar reigon
Os acromiale (acromion bipartite): failure of ossification centers to fuse near the shoulder
Metatarsal facets:
Squatting facets needed to easily and comfortably squar, most westerners lack this facet
Craniosynostosis: the sutures in an infant or child skull close too early, restricting skull and brain growth
Polydactyl: extra digits, soft tissue often without bones or joints
Accessory bones: does not frequently occur in body but present in a large enough sector of people
Spina bifida: split spine, birth defect where the neural tube fails to close creating an incomplete spinal
cord with unfused and open vertabrae
Sternal aperture
Septal aperture
Blood vessel grooves
Acquired anemia: low levels of iron in blood, causes cell distortion and can cause lytic bone changes,
can be triggered by certain drugs, infections or other environmental exposures, cells form healthy but
are destoryed by trapping in spleen or by infections or drugs, frequently connected with an autoimmune
disorder
Porotic hyperostosis: causes bones to be sp[ongy and soft by overgrown spongy marrow, suaully
conneced to anemia and malnourishment
Cribra orbitalia: small clusters of openings in the frontal bone, suggested does not occur in modern
populations
Rickets: abnomral contours or shapes on bone caused by lack of vitamin D in children, softening and
weakening of bone
Osteomalacia: softening of bones due to mineralization (rickets in children), long bones bow
Vertebral wedging: microfractures to the anterior part of vertabrae, common in elderly, decrease in
height
Scoliosis: crooked spine, lateral curvature, rare in indutrial populations
Kyphosis: spinal column moves forward to a degree more than usual (hunch back)
Rheumatoid arthritis: inflammatory disorder pmostly in the joints, destroys cartilage, inflammation in
lungs etc, nodular lesions
Pannus: hanging flap of tissue, affects RA patients by forming in the joints affected causing loss of bone
and cartiliage
Button osteoma: on the skull, like a mole of bone growth
Osteomyelitis: infection of bone or bone marrow
Cloaca: opening for intestinal and urinal tracks (anal beak)
Amalgam: a tooth filling
Metopism: nonfusion of metopic suture splitting the frontal bone
Osteoporosis: bone disease in which density decreases, fragility concerns, collapse of vertebrae possible
Meth mouth (see also Burns p. 181): advanced tooth decay from dry mouth and poor oral hygiene h