ID using Dental records

Question 1

What is a postmortem dental exam?

Answer 1

comparing radio with antemortem records: written docs, photos, casts, etc

Question 2

What are problems with comparing post mortem radios?

Answer 2

• all teeth present with no restorations is most common
• Poor/inconsistent antemortem record keeping
• Recording errors
• Multiple dentists

Question 3

What is forensic odontology?

Answer 3

application of dentistry to forensic identification?

Question 4

How does a postmortem dental exam go?

Answer 4

1. inventory of all present teeth, missing pre and missing post
2. restorations
3. dental pathology
4. excessive dental wear
5. bite type, spacing, malocclusion

Question 5

What is enamel hypoplasia?

Answer 5

tooth enamel doesn’t develop properly > leading to thin/missing enamel on parts of tooth

Question 6

What percentage of individuals have patterns of restorations?

Answer 6

less than 1%

Question 7

What are supernumerary teeth?

Answer 7

• teeth that appear in addition to the normal 32 in adults
• can appear anywhere in the dental arch