Sex and stature estimation on the tibia: a virtual pilot study on a contemporary Hispanic population

Sex and stature estimation represent two pillars in the creation of the biological profile, providing crucial demographic information that forensic anthropologists use for the identification of unknown skeletonized remains. This pilot study evaluates population data proposing a virtual sex and stature estimation method for a Hispanic population using the tibia. Ninety-two CT scans from the New Mexico Decedent Image Database were used to generate 3D models of the left tibia (forty-seven males, forty-five females). Tibial length, proximal and distal breadth were the parameters taken. Intra-observer error was assessed using an intra-class correlation coefficient. Sex differences were explored, and discriminant function and regression analysis used to develop sex and stature estimation formulae, respectively. High repeatability was demonstrated. Sex estimation accuracies ranged between 83.7 per cent and 93.5 per cent, with proximal and distal breadth showing the highest correct classification rates. Stature estimation produced errors between 5.51 cm and 7 cm, with the validation test providing errors falling within the predicted standard error of the estimate reported by the original equations. This study suggests the potential for accurate sex and stature estimation in the Hispanic sample. Although a larger sample is needed to corroborate the preliminary results, the proposed methods might assist in the identification of future forensic cases.