Forensic age assessment of living adolescents and young adults at the Institute of Legal Medicine, Münster, from 2009 to 2018

Hagen, M. van; Schmidt, Sven; Schulz, Ronald; Vieth, Volker; Ottow, Christian; Olze, Andreas; Pfeiffer, Heidi; Schmeling, Andreas

doi:10.1007/s00414-019-02239-2

Cited by 26 publications

(24 citation statements)

References 20 publications

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“…This is consistent with national figures regarding unaccompanied minor applications and age assessments which showed a clear predominance of male refugees (95%) from these three countries [ 22 , 25 ]. A recent German study also found that most unaccompanied minors examined in Münster during the 2017–2018 period came from countries of sub-Saharan Africa, with Guinea being the most represented country (31%) [ 3 ]. As regards the declared ages, our figures also complied with national statistics, with a predominance of individuals stating an age of 16 years and over (76.6%) in our study.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Numerous studies on forensic age assessment of migrants have been carried out in various countries [ 3 , 26 – 32 ]. Among those that applied AGFAD recommendations, Hagen et al reported 37.8% of unaccompanied minors that had reached the age of majority beyond doubt [ 3 ], while Rudolf et al found that 61% had reached this age limit in their cohort [ 26 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Actual ages could be established in only 27 cases, highlighting the duration and the low completion rate of these proceedings (some of them were still ongoing at the time of writing this article). This is partly due to the frequent lack of reliable birth registration systems in the countries of origin [ 3 , 26 ]. However, it could be observed from this sub-sample that the assessed minimum age was systematically lower than the established age, which was always beyond the age of majority.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…These high migration inflows have resulted in a growing number of refugees without reliable identity documents who pretend to be minors. Unaccompanied third-country children are entitled to particular privileges, such as protection against deportation or youth welfare services [ 3 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Forensic age assessments of alleged unaccompanied minors at the Medicolegal Institute of Montpellier: a 4-year retrospective study

et al. 2022

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Background As many other European countries, France has to deal with a growing number of migrants including some who contend age minority entitling them to benefits and privileges reserved for children within the context of legal proceedings. In case of doubtful minority, medical examinations may be carried out to assess skeletal and dental age. Our objective was to analyse the age assessments regarding individuals of doubtful minority assertion at the Medico-legal Institute of the University Hospital of Montpellier since 2018. Methods Expert reports of forensic age assessments performed during the 2018–2021 period were reviewed. Demographic data and results from medical and radiological investigations based on AGFAD recommendations were recorded in each case. When available, conclusions of judicial investigations about the individuals’ actual age were collected. Results A total of 265 reports were compiled. Age assessments predominantly concerned males (97.7%) and the main reported country of origin was sub-Saharan Africa (80.4%). The mean reported age was 16.3 ± 0.8 years. The individual’s stated age was compatible with the age assessment in 31 cases (11.7%), while expert reports concluded that the age of majority had been reached in 131 cases (49.4%). In cases of discrepancies, the average difference between the stated and the assessed lowest possible age (= assessed minimum age) was 2.7 ± 2.3 years and 6.9 ± 3.8 years between the stated and the most probable age. Age assessments could be compared with actual ages determined by court proceedings in 27 cases, with established ages being systematically higher than the assessed minimum ages (mean difference = 4.4 ± 4.0 years). The difference between actual and stated ages ranged from 1.8 up to 18.9 years (mean difference = 6.4 ± 4.0 years). The used protocol never led to any age overestimation in this population. Conclusion Our study reinforces the relevance of AGFAD recommendations for forensic age assessment and calls for the harmonization of practices based on this methodology in the European countries.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Forensic age assessments of alleged unaccompanied minors at the Medicolegal Institute of Montpellier: a 4-year retrospective study

et al. 2022

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“…During adolescence, up to an age of 21 years, age estimations are mainly of interest in legal contexts pertaining to criminal and asylum law [2]. Up to this age, methods that are useful for the estimation of age, in addition to anamnesis, are x-rays of the left hand (useful until about the 18th year of life) [3], panoramic dental radiographs to assess tooth mineralization status [4], and, in cases with completed skeletal growth of the hand-wrist, additional radiographic assessment of the medial epiphyseal clavicle by computed tomography [5][6][7].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Assessment of renal glomerulosclerosis and thickness of the carotid intima-media complex as a means of age estimation in Western European bodies

et al. 2021

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Introduction The estimation of age-at-death of unidentified cadavers is a central aspect of the identification process. With increasing age, the incidence of glomerulosclerosis and the thickness of the carotid wall have been observed to also increase. This correlation has been demonstrated in various international histological studies. The aim of our study was to assess whether these correlations also apply to a Western European population. Methodology In this retrospective observational study, kidney and common carotid artery samples from 216 cases autopsied at the Institute of Legal Medicine at the Justus-Liebig University in Giessen, Germany, were examined. Only cases with available tissue samples from both body sides were included. Exclusion criteria were poor sample quality and an age younger than 21 years. After histological processing, the tissue samples were assessed and digitally evaluated. Regression and classification analyses were used to investigate the correlation between age-at-death and intima-media thickness and age-at-death and the incidence of renal glomerular sclerosis. Results Of the 216 autopsy cases, 183 were included for evaluation. Analysis of the carotid artery segments showed a strong correlation (Pearson correlation coefficient r = 0.887) between the intima-media-complex thickness and chronological age. Classification of the glomerulosclerotic incidence showed a correlation of 37.7–43.1% with the predicted age group. Discussion Both the intima-media thickness and the proportion of sclerotic glomeruli can be used to estimate age in Western European cadavers. On the basis of these results, both methods are suited to supplement other already established methods for age-at-death estimation in the identification of an unknown cadaver.

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Die Aussagekraft sozialpädagogischer Altersschätzungen im Vergleich zur forensischen Altersdiagnostik

Hagen

Schmidt

Ernst³

et al. 2020

Rechtsmedizin

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ZusammenfassungIn der vorliegenden Studie sollte die Aussagekraft sozialpädagogischer Altersschätzungen im Vergleich zu forensischen Altersbegutachtungen, die entsprechend den Empfehlungen der Arbeitsgemeinschaft für Forensische Altersdiagnostik durchgeführt worden waren, analysiert werden. Hierfür wurden 47 Fälle ausgewertet, bei denen sowohl sozialpädagogische Altersschätzungen von in Jugendhilfeeinrichtungen betreuten unbegleiteten minderjährigen Flüchtlingen als auch forensische Altersgutachten zur Verfügung standen. In 44 Fällen, in denen die Einrichtungen von Minderjährigkeit ausgingen, bescheinigten die forensischen Altersgutachten in 12 Fällen zweifelsfreie Volljährigkeit und in 24 weiteren Fällen wahrscheinliche Volljährigkeit. In 2 Fällen, in denen die Einrichtungen die Minderjährigkeit anzweifelten, wurden im Ergebnis der forensischen Altersbegutachtung in dem einen Fall zweifelsfreie Volljährigkeit und in dem anderen Fall wahrscheinliche Volljährigkeit festgestellt. In einem Fall, in dem die Einrichtung von Volljährigkeit ausging, wurde auf der Grundlage der forensischen Altersbegutachtung wahrscheinliche Volljährigkeit mit noch möglicher Minderjährigkeit attestiert. Objektivierbare psychosoziale Kriterien, mit denen Volljährigkeit zweifelsfrei festgestellt werden kann, ließen sich nicht erkennen. Es ist davon auszugehen, dass der Anteil falsch-positiver Minderjährigkeitsfeststellungen bei sozialpädagogischen Altersschätzungen deutlich höher als bei forensischen Altersbegutachtungen ist. Ebenso scheint ein relevantes Risiko falsch-positiver Volljährigkeitsfeststellungen bei sozialpädagogischen Altersschätzungen zu bestehen. Es wurde geschlussfolgert, dass sozialpädagogische Altersschätzungen keine überzeugende Alternative zu forensischen Altersbegutachtungen darstellen.

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Forensic age assessment of living adolescents and young adults at the Institute of Legal Medicine, Münster, from 2009 to 2018

Cited by 26 publications

References 20 publications

Forensic age assessments of alleged unaccompanied minors at the Medicolegal Institute of Montpellier: a 4-year retrospective study

Forensic age assessments of alleged unaccompanied minors at the Medicolegal Institute of Montpellier: a 4-year retrospective study

Assessment of renal glomerulosclerosis and thickness of the carotid intima-media complex as a means of age estimation in Western European bodies

Die Aussagekraft sozialpädagogischer Altersschätzungen im Vergleich zur forensischen Altersdiagnostik

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