The usability of the ratio of bi-humerus breadth to maximum pelvic breadth in sex estimation

Abstract

Background Although sex can be determined with high accuracy in forensic anthropology, additional parameters are still required. Aim To estimate with known simple statistical methods, the usability of the bi-humerus/maximum pelvic breadth ratio in sex estimation. Subjects and methods Bi-humerus breadth and maximum pelvic breadth were measured using the topogram images (196 males, 171 females), the ratio between them was calculated. We examined the usability of the ratio of the distance between the lateral edges of the right and left humeral heads to the maximum distance between the two most lateral parts of the iliac crests in sex estimation. Results There was significant difference in the bi-humerus breadth and “bi-humerus breadth/maximum pelvic breadth” according to sex. The greatest breadth of the pelvis was higher in females, yet the difference was not statistically significant. The ratio yielded 80.6%−90.3% accuracy for females and 73.6%–74.7% for males, depending on arm position. Conclusions The obtained data may contribute to the development of formulas created with metric measurements used in sex estimation. This can be used as a parameter to help in estimating the sex of skeletal remains found as a whole or excavated without losing their integrity, and also in the reconstruction of body structure.

Keywords

• forensic osteology
• sex estimation
• body ratio