Morphometric evaluation of the styloid process of the temporal bone as an aid in age and sex discrimination – A retrospective digital panaromic study

Abstract

Introduction: Maxillofacial radiology plays a significant role in forensic anthropology for age and sex discrimination in case of mass disasters. Anatomically, Styloid process is bony structure; cylindrical in shape arises from the temporal bone which tapers gradually towards apex. A careful clinical and radiological examination can lead to early detection of its length, anatomic variations and elongation. Therefore, morphometric analysis of length of the styloid process can be one of the adjuvant tools for age and sex discrimination in forensic anthropology. Aim: To evaluate the length and anatomic variations of the styloid process as an aid in age and sex discrimination using digital panaromic radiographs. Materials and Methods: Digital panaromic radiographs of 3800 individuals were randomly taken from private diagnostic clinic's database. All the panaromic radiographs were evaluated for the radiographic length and anatomic variations of the styloid process bilaterally using measuring tool inbuild in the software. The obtained data was analyzed using SPSS software version 21.0. Results: The mean lengths of the styloid processes were statistically significant as the age advances and also in males and females bilaterally (p value < 0.05) with the prevalence rate of elongated process reported as 22.47%. Conclusion:The morphometric evaluation of the styloid process of the temporal bone can be used as an adjuvant in age and sex discrimination using digital panaromic radiograph.