Age Estimation by Tympanic Bone Development in Foetal and Infant Skeletons

Abstract

This article analyses age‐related changes in the development of the temporal bone in a sample of foetal and infant skeletons to contribute to the estimation of age by means of this skeletal element in bioarchaeological and forensic contexts. The sample was selected from a contemporary documented skeletal collection and is constituted by the temporal bones of individuals of both sexes (n = 37) with ages from 23 weeks of gestation up to 11 postnatal months. Different states of fusion of the tympanic ring and development of the tympanic plate were scored separately, and intra‐observer consistency was evaluated. Both documented chronological age and skeletal estimated age were examined in relation to successive stages of fusion and development in the pre‐ and postnatal periods. It was found that the state of fusion of the tympanic ring is especially useful in the discrimination of foetal and postnatal individuals, whereas the development of the tympanic plate is helpful in the differentiation of individuals from and below 3 postnatal months. Even though a certain degree of overlap between successive stages was observed, the fusion of the tympanic ring and the development of the tympanic plate constitute good indicators of age in foetal and infant skeletons. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Blood is thicker than baptismal water: A late medieval perinatal burial in a small household chest

“…Further comparisons with the basi‐cranium produced correspondence with individuals between 32 and 38 pre‐natal weeks; the dimensions of the pars lateralis (length, 21 mm; width, 12 mm) are comparable with those individuals within the age range of 34–38 weeks in utero , and the pars petrosa (length, 30 mm) to those within the 32‐ to 34‐weeks range. Additionally, the developmental states of the sphenoid and tympanic plates of the temporal bones correspond with descriptions of foetuses in the later stages of pregnancy (Anson et al, 1955; Garcia‐Mancuso et al, 2016; Humphrey & Scheuer, 2006; Schaefer et al, 2009).…”

Fetal age at death estimation on dry bone: testing the applicability of equations developed on a radiographic sample

“…We would advise, thus, for the application of both statistical approaches -and for the use of confidence intervals to convey GA estimates. Also, whenever possible, GA estimates based on long bone lengths should be complemented with data from other parts of the skeleton (e.g., García-Mancuso, Inda & Salceda, 2016;Tocheri and Molto, 2002), particularly methods based on dental remains, usually Carneiro et al (2016) with analogous formulae developed by Scheuer et al (1980) and Fazekas and Kósa (1978) in a hospital (radiographic) sample from Portugal (adapted from Carneiro et al [2016]) more accurate and less biased (García-Mancuso, 2014;Nava et al, 2017). In the case of fetal remains, the main problem with dental methods is associated with «availability / accessibility»: crown mineralization ensues relatively late during pregnancy, between the 3 rd and 4 th months in utero, and in part due to their small dimensions, tooth crowns are more likely to not be retrieved during excavation.…”