Cameriere’s open apices methodology for dental age estimation in children: a scoping review from a Latin American perspective

Latin American Forensic Odontology: A Scoping Review of its Current Research and the Objective/Subjective Nature of its Studies

“…Although Prof. Ricardo Henrique Alves da Silva (from Brazil) is currently the Vice President of IOFOS (2023-2026) and has also been its Secretary General (2017-2023), the rest of LATAM countries has only managed to insert itself in recent years in this search for global standards for research and field practice in FO. In this review, the outstanding leadership of studies carried out by researchers from Brazil (63 of the 86 records, 73.26 % of the total studies) reflects the prominence acquired by that country in LATAM FO, which has already been reported in recent reviews (Espinoza-Silva et al, 2023;Merdietio Boedi et al, 2023;Rodríguez-Niklitschek et al, 2023). Beyond personal initiatives, we believe that Brazil's consolidation as a leader in research and productivity aligns with this global outlook and adoption of standards and quality assurance.…”

“…We must also note that the timid but constant entry of the rest of LATAM countries (Chile leading with 11 articles, leadership also reported by Espinoza-Silva et al, 2023) is a declaration of good intentions to this cooperation and understanding of globalization, both of the questions as well as their answers. Whether due to its recognized diversity and population particularities, and its political and social conditions, LATAM is a very attractive opportunity to challenge forensic dental research if it manages to align with global standards (Ortiz et al, 2015;Acuña-Méndez et al, 2022;Rodríguez-Niklitschek et al, 2023).…”

“…Latin America (LATAM) has a history of missing, disasters, and unidentified persons that has led to the development of forensic specializations recognized in some of its countries, but lacking in some sense of sustainability, appropriate research or specific training in all its dimensions and disciplines (Hofmeister & Navarro, 2017;Alcántara-Ayala, 2019;Calmon, 2019). In particular, FO has shown interesting and promising developments, but it is heterogeneous and still far from international standards (Ortiz et al, 2015;Acuña-Méndez et al, 2022;Rodríguez-Niklitschek et al, 2023). Considering that traditional FO analysis may show limitations related to the observer's subjective judgment, and that it is expected that research will progress towards objective assessments through strategies not dependent on morphological, analytical, molecular, automated, and reproducible traits, based on scientific probabilistic studies (Martin-de-Las-Heras et al, 2014;Tejasvi et al, 2021;Bae & Woo, 2022;Mohammad et al, 2022), the following research questions were formulated: What topics did LATAM FO researchers focus on their original research in the last three years?…”