title: Determination of sex by radiographic analysis of mental foramen in North Indian population.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Identification and determination of sex of unknown human skeletal remains has been one of the most challenging tasks for forensic dentistry. The purpose of this study was to determine the gender from the analysis of mental foramen on panoramic radiographs in a north Indian population.
  
  
  METHODS
  One hundred radiographs were selected for the analysis of mental foramen. Tangents were drawn to the superior and inferior borders of the foramen and perpendiculars were drawn from the tangents to the lower border of the mandible (S-L and I-L). The data obtained were tabulated and subjected to statistical analysis.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The average values of S-L and I-L were significantly higher in males than in females, while the distances for the right and left sides of an individual were almost similar in both the male and the females group, and the results were non-significant.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The distances from the mental foramen to the lower border of the mandible exhibit sexual dimorphism in the north Indian population.
authors: Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Pathology, Faculty of Dental Sciences, IMS, BHU, Varanasi, India.
authors: Akhilesh
authors: A
authors: Chandra
authors: Anil
authors: A
authors: Singh
authors: Manjunath
authors: M
authors: Badni
authors: Rohit
authors: R
authors: Jaiswal
authors: Archana
authors: A
authors: Agnihotri
keywords: Mental foramen; panoramic radiograph; sex determination
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