Researchers Say New Imaging Technique Can Identify Age and Sex of a Corpse With 95% Accuracy
Posted on January 23, 2013
Researchers at the University of Grenada, Spain, say they have designed a new imaging technique that can determine the age and sex of a corpse with a 95% accuracy rate. The system is based on free software called Image and a free DICOM displayer called K-Pacs. DICOM stands for Digital Imaging and Communication in Medicine. It is an international standard for distributing medical images.
The researchers examined 169 CT scans of patients between 17 and 90 years of age supplied by the Castile-La Mancha health service (SESCAM). The researchers examined the sagittal sections of the the articular surface of the pubic symphysis and the pubis itself. Imaging techniques were used to analyze sections. Histograms of the structures were obtained and the statistical variables of histograms were entered into the program to determine how histograms are related to age and sex.
Manuel Lopez Alcaraz, a researcher at the Forensic Anthropology Laboratory of the University of Granada, and the author of the study, said in a release, "Age and sex are essential for the identification of corpses, and the pubis is especially relevant for this purpose. In our study, we exploited the great capacity of computer systems to discriminate between the different gray shades in a histogram (the human eye only can discriminate 64) to determine how histograms can provide information about age and sex."
The researchers also say their findings contradict an assumption in Forensic Anthropology that the pubis is only useful for the identification of corpses in the age range of 20 to 40 years. Alcaraz says, "We obtained excellent results in the identification of corpses of people older than 50 years, especially in men."