NCJ Number
208576
Journal
Journal of Forensic Sciences Volume: 50 Issue: 1 Dated: January 2005 Pages: 127-133
Date Published
January 2005
Length
7 pages
Annotation
This article describes a new software package, DentalPrint (2004, University of Granada, Department of Forensic Medicine and Forensic Odontology, Granada, Spain), that produces different comparison overlays from 3D dental cast images depending on the pressure of the bite or the distortion caused by victim-biter interaction.
Abstract
The scientific basis for bite mark identification is the assumption of uniqueness of an individual's dentition, which is used to match a bite mark to a suspected perpetrator. The procedure for comparing bite marks is well established and includes measurement and analysis of the pattern, size, and shape of teeth against similar characteristics observed in an injury on skin or a mark left on an object. Matching dentition to particular bite marks, however, is complex, because the same dentition can produce variable bite marks due to the anatomic location of the injury or the elasticity of the skin tissue where the bite was made. Thus, the characteristics of a bite mark made by a particular dentition on a victim will be determined by a number of variables. The computer software package tested in this study allows users to accurately and objectively select the biting edges of interest from the suspect's teeth, and it can produce different comparison overlays with the selective use of tools that simulate various biting pressures or distortions caused by the dynamics of the action of biting. Rather than being limited to making a single direct comparison of a suspect's dentition with a specific bite mark, this study found that the use of DentalPrint software expanded the investigator's analytical options to encompass a number of variables, namely, the specific teeth involved in the bite mark, the distortion caused by victim-biter interaction, and the pressure applied in the biting effort. 1 table, 7 figures, and 15 references