title: Estimation of stature from the length of the sternum in South Indian females.
abstract: Estimation of stature is one of the principal elements in practical forensic casework involving examination of skeletal remains. The present study was undertaken to estimate stature from the length of the sternum in South Indian females using a linear regression equation. The material for the present study consisted of intact sternums belonging to adult females of South Indian origin aged between 25 and 35 years of age obtained during medico-legal autopsies. The length of the sternum was measured as the combined length of the manubrium and the mesosternum (body of the sternum) from the incisura jugularis (central suprasternal notch) to the mesoxiphoid junction along the mid-sagittal plane using vernier calipers. A linear regression equation [Stature = 111.599 + (3.316 × Length of the sternum)] was derived to estimate stature from the length of the sternum. The correlation coefficient was 0.639. The standard error of the estimate was 4.11 cm. The present study concludes that the length of the sternum is a reliable predictor of stature in adult South Indian females and can be used as a tool for stature estimation when better predictors of stature like the long bones of the limbs are not available when examining skeletal remains.
authors.affiliation: Department of Forensic Medicine and Toxicology, Kasturba Medical College (Affiliated to Manipal University), Mangalore 575001, India. mangalore971@yahoo.co.in
authors.forename: Ritesh G
authors.initials: RG
authors.lastname: Menezes
authors.forename: K R
authors.initials: KR
authors.lastname: Nagesh
authors.forename: Francis N P
authors.initials: FN
authors.lastname: Monteiro
authors.forename: G Pradeep
authors.initials: GP
authors.lastname: Kumar
authors.forename: Tanuj
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Kanchan
authors.forename: Selma
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Uysal
authors.forename: P P Jagadish
authors.initials: PP
authors.lastname: Rao
authors.forename: Prateek
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Rastogi
authors.forename: Stany W
authors.initials: SW
authors.lastname: Lobo
authors.forename: Sneha G
authors.initials: SG
authors.lastname: Kalthur
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001827:Body Height; D005260:Female; D018732:Forensic Anthropology; D006801:Humans; D007194:India; D016014:Linear Models; D013249:Sternum / Q000033:anatomy & histology*; D044465:White People