Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2022 Mar 22;10(4):50.
doi: 10.3390/dj10040050.

Age Assessment in Children and Adolescents by Measuring the Open Apices in Teeth: A New Sardinian Formula

Enrico Spinas  1 , Giorgia Melis  2 , Nicoletta Zerman  3 , Stefano De Luca  4 , Roberto Cameriere  5
Affiliations

Age Assessment in Children and Adolescents by Measuring the Open Apices in Teeth: A New Sardinian Formula

Enrico Spinas et al. Dent J (Basel). .

Abstract

Age estimation in children is fundamental in both clinical and forensic fields. The aim of this study was to evaluate the accuracy of the Cameriere’s European and Italian formulae for age estimation in Sardinian children and adolescents, a genetically isolated population. A sample of 202 orthopantomograms of healthy Sardinian children and adolescents (100 females and 102 males) aged between 6 and 17 years was retrospectively evaluated. The seven left mandibular teeth were assessed with the Cameriere’s European and Italian formulae. The teeth with closed apex (N0) were counted and, in the teeth with open apex, the distance between the inner sides was calculated. All variables showed a significant and negative correlation with age except N0 and g. Sex (g), the variables s, N0, and the first-order interaction between them, contributed substantially to the age measurement (p < 0.001). Although the value of x5 had a low prediction level, it generated the following multiple linear regression formula, specific for the Sardinian sample: Age = 10.372 + 0.469 g + 0.810 N0 − 1.079 s − 0.398 s ∙ N0 − 0.326 × 5. Only the Sardinian and European formulae allowed to obtain an acceptable interclass agreement (both the lower and upper >0.7). The results showed that the European formula could be accurate for assessing age in this sample of children and adolescents.

Keywords: Sardinia; age estimation; children; dental age; forensic sciences; open apices.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
The residual plots ((A): Sardinian, (B): Italian and (C): European formula).
Figure 1
Figure 1
The residual plots ((A): Sardinian, (B): Italian and (C): European formula).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Norelli G.A., Pinchi V. Odontologia Forense—Medicina Legale in Odontoiatria—Guida Alla Valutazione del Danno Odontostomatologico. Piccin Editore; Milan, Italy: 2010.
    1. Cameriere R., De Angelis D., Ferrante L., Scarpino F., Cingolani M. Age estimation in children by measurement of open apices in teeth: A European formula. Int. J. Leg. Med. 2007;121:449–453. doi: 10.1007/s00414-007-0179-1. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Tanner J.M., Healy M.J.R., Goldstein H., Cameron N. Assessment of Skeletal Maturity and Prediction of Adults’ Height (TW3 Method) Saunders; London, UK: 2001.
    1. UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) Guidelines on International Protection No 8: Child Asylum Claims under Articles 1(A)2 and 1(F) of the 1951 Convention and/or 1967 Protocol Relating to the Status of Refugees. 2009. [(accessed on 5 February 2022)]. Available online: https://www.unhcr.org/publications/legal/50ae46309/guidelines-internatio....
    1. Schmeling A., Grundmann C., Fuhrmann A., Kaatsch H.J., Knell B., Ramsthaler F., Reisinger W., Riepert T., Ritz-Timme S., Rosing F.W., et al. Criteria for age estimation in living individuals. Int. J. Leg. Med. 2008;122:457–460. doi: 10.1007/s00414-008-0254-2. - DOI - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources