Anuradha Katiyar, Gayathri Ramesh.
Background: Forensic facial reconstruction (FFR) is a mixture of science and art, as it attempts to re-establish the contours of the soft tissues over the skull. From a forensic point of view, identification of an unknown body relies heavily on this visual aspect of recognition. Accurate facial soft tissue thickness data are essential for acceptable results.
Facial reconstruction (FR) relies on the relationships between the facial features, subcutaneous soft tissues and underlying bony structure of the skull. If impossible to compare questioned remains with possible familiar material, in such cases one of the last chances is to recreate ante mortem appearance is by FR.
Within forensic anthropology facial reconstruction is employed when all other alternatives are unsuccessful, thus it is a last resort employed in the anticipation that someone, somewhere, will be able to identify the deceased and offer clues to law enforcement investigators which ultimately lead to an arrest.
Aims & objectives:
Material & Method: The study was conducted among patients of Kanpur district reporting to the dental OPD of Rama Dental College Hospital and Research Center, Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh. In this study, lateral cephalometric radiographs of 100 healthy individuals were taken for 50 North Indian males and 50 North Indian females. All of them were aged between 15 and 40 years. Ethical approval was obtained from the ethical committee of Rama Dental College Hospital and Research Center, Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh.
Results: Student’s t-test was applied to assess association between facial parameters and gender. The p-value of <0.05 was considered to be statistically significant. Of all the parameters, facial angle, upper lip curvature, Nose tip to H-line, and Upper lip sulcus did not show any statistical association between male and female groups. Skeletal convexity Pta, H-angle, and Lower lip to H-line was found to be greater in females than males and the difference was statistically significant. Upper lip strain, upper lip thickness, lower sulcus depth, and soft tissue chin thickness were parameters that had greater values in males as compared to females and this difference was also found to be statistically significant.
ANOVA test was applied to assess the facial parameters between the age categories. The facial angle was reported highest in the 31-35 years age group and lowest in 21-25 years age group. However the difference in facial angle values was not statistically significant between the age groups. The remaining parameters showed a statistically significant difference between age groups and so a post hoc test was applied to present the association between each age groupin the individual parameters. The post hoc test is presented and explained below.
Difference in Upper lip curvature was statistically significant between 15- 20 age group with 26-30 and 31-35 age groups, 21-25 with 36-40 age groups. H-angle was found to be statistically different between 15-20 and 31-35 years age group, 21-25 and 31-35 age group and 26-30 and 31-35 age groups. The upper lip thickness was found to be statistically different between 15-20 and 26-30 age group, 15-20 and 36-40 age group, 21-25 and 36-40 age groups. The upper lip strain was markedly significant when age groups 15-20 and 26-30, 21-25 and 26-30, 26-30 and 36-40 age groups were compared. The difference between lower lip to H-line was statistically significant between 15- 20 age groups versus all other groups, 21-25 versus 31-35 and 36-40 age groups, and 26-30 and 31-35 age groups. Also, in soft tissue chin thickness, statistically significant differences were found between age groups 15-20 and 26-30, 31-35 and 21-25 with 26-30, 31-35, 26-40 and between 26-30 and 36-40 age groups
ANOVA test was applied to assess the facial parameters and their association among the different groups as categorized by BMI categories. Of all the parameters, Facial angle, Upper lip strain and lower sulcus depth did not present any statistical variation as per BMI. The remaining parameters where BMI categories showed statistically significant difference between each other were further analysed by using post hoc test and is presented below.
Post hoc analysis for Upper lip curvature showed significant difference in <18.5 BMI and 25-29.9, 35-39.9 and30-34.9 with 18.5–24.9, 25-29.9 and 35-39.9. Skeletal convexity Pta differed significantly in <18.5 with25-29.9 and 35-39.9with 18.5–24.9 and 30-34.9. BMI categories showed statistical difference between all categories except between 18.5–24.9 and 25-29.9, 30-34.9 BMI and 30-34.9 with 35-39.9 in case of H-angle. Nose tip to H line was statistically different for 35-39.9 with all other categories. Upper lip sulcus was found to be different in 35-39.9 BMI to all other categories and additionally <18.5 BMI was also different from 18.5–24.9 and 25-29.9. Upper lip thickness was measured to be statistically different for 25-29.9 BMI with <18 and 30-34.9, while 35-39.9 BMI differed with <18, 18.5–24.9and 30-34.9. Lower
lip thickness was statistically variable only between<18.5 and 35-39.9. Lastly, soft tissue thickness showed a significant difference in BMI for<18 and 18.5–24.9 with 25-29.9 and 35-39.9 BMI respectively.
Conclusion: In our study of all the parameters, facial angle, upper lip curvature, Nose tip to H-line, and Upper lip sulcus did not show any statistical association between male and female groups. Skeletal convexity Pt A, H-angle, and Lower lip to H-line was found to be greater in females than males and the difference was statistically significant. Upper lip strain, upper lip thickness, lower sulcus depth, and soft tissue chin thickness were parameters that had greater values in males as compared to females and this difference was also found to be statistically significant.
This study focused on evaluating soft tissue profile of Kanpur individuals according to Holdaway analysis. The results revealed that some measurements were different from those proposed by Holdaway including; facial angle, H angle, upper lip curvature, nose tip to H line and upper lip sulcus. These differences disclose the importance of using normative data established for Kanpur population in forensic reconstruction.
After analysing the effect of BMI on facial soft tissue thicknesses, this study states that the nutritional status of the individuals is an important factor to consider during facial reconstruction from skulls, as well as in studies on soft tissue thicknesses.
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