title: Comparison of the validity of two dental age estimation methods: A study on South Indian population.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Forensic odontologists are often confronted with the problem of estimating age for the identification of unknown bodies or skeletal remains of accidents, crimes and disaster victims. Teeth have the benefit of being preserved long after other tissues have disintegrated and present the only means for age estimation. Different techniques have been published for dental age estimation with variable accuracy, precision and reliability. The search for optimal method by forensic odontologists has continued over the years until the present day.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  The present study was aimed at evaluating and comparing the accuracy of age estimation using translucent dentin and cemental annulations.
  
  
  METHODS
  A total of 150 freshly extracted teeth were obtained and longitudinal ground sections were prepared. The length of the translucent dentin was measured and cemental annulations were counted in each section and the age was calculated separately for both the methods.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The present study suggests that both the methods are reliable in the middle age groups; whereas the large error obtained in the extreme age groups indicate that translucent dentin method should be preferred in older age group and cemental annulations method in the younger age group before the formation of translucent dentin.
authors.affiliation: Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Pathology and Microbiology, Vishnu Dental College, Vishnupur, Bhimavarm, Andhra Pradesh, India.
authors.forename: B S
authors.initials: BS
authors.lastname: Shruthi
authors.affiliation: Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Pathology and Microbiology, College of Dental Sciences, Davangere, Karnataka, India.
authors.forename: Mandana
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Donoghue
authors.affiliation: Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Pathology, College of Dental Sciences, Davangere, Karnataka, India.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Selvamani
authors.affiliation: Department of Pedodontics, Sri Balaji Dental College and Hospital, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India.
authors.forename: P Vinodh
authors.initials: PV
authors.lastname: Kumar
keywords: Age estimation; cemental annulations; translucent dentin
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