A Comparative Evaluation of Gustafson’s Formula and New Formula for Age Estimation in India – A Forensic Study

The choice to use teeth for age determination is well accepted due to their longevity ability of being resilient to change. The total of 228 extracted teeth collected from the patients visited to the Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, NIMS Dental College, Jaipur, the teeth were without dental fillings and without and/or cavity selected. The known age was from 21 to 70 years with the average age of 43.46 years. For age estimation the method according to Gustafson was used. Every tooth was subject to longitudinal section of the midpulpal area. The following dental parameters were studied in each case: attrition, periodontal bone loss, root translucency, secondary dentin deposition, cementum apposition and root resorption. Total scores of different parameters plotted against the chronological age and regression formula was obtained. Using this formula ages were estimated, Gustafson formula was also applied in the same scores and ages estimated. The results of the chronological and estimated age by both formulae have been statistically compared using Pearson’s correlation and regression analysis. The results showed strong correlation (0.92; p<0.001) between chronological and estimated age by using both formulae. We found the mean error of ± 5.47 by using newly derived and formula and ± 6.35 by Gustafson’s formula. As a result of our study it was found that newly derived formula provides better results in comparison with Gustafson’s formula in Indian population. A positive correlation between age and total scores of physiological changes also revealed.