Is the persistence of an epiphyseal scar of the knee a reliable marker of biological age?

Details

Serval ID
serval:BIB_B9BAB7C63A9C
Type
Article: article from journal or magazin.
Collection
Publications
Title
Is the persistence of an epiphyseal scar of the knee a reliable marker of biological age?
Journal
International Journal of Legal Medicine
Author(s)
Faisant M., Rerolle C., Faber C., Dedouit F., Telmon N., Saint-Martin P.
ISSN
1437-1596 (Electronic)
ISSN-L
0937-9827
Publication state
Published
Issued date
2015
Peer-reviewed
Oui
Volume
129
Number
3
Pages
603-608
Language
english
Notes
Publication types: Journal ArticlePublication Status: ppublish
Abstract
Age estimation of living individuals is a regular activity in medico-legal practice. Among the available tools for determining skeletal age, some authors have stated that the disappearance of epiphyseal scars could be a useful marker. The aim of the present study was to assess whether the presence of an epiphyseal scar on the knee, as seen on a plain X-ray, was linked to biological age. A total of 988 frontal X-rays of individuals (509 females and 479 males) aged between 15 and 40 years were analyzed to see whether a scar was visible or not on each of the three epiphyses of the knee. A scar was visible for 96% of the females and 98% of the males. For each sex, scars were visible at each year of age, from 15 to 40 years. In younger females, there were 15 individuals with no scar visible on the fibula, 16 on the tibia, and 20 on the femur. For males, the ages were respectively 16, 17, and 18 years. On a frontal X-ray, the persistence of epiphyseal scars was not a marker of a recent fusion. All individuals with fully ossified knee that had no scar on the femur were older than 18 years. Further studies focusing on epiphyseal scars on MR and CT scans could be useful, as these techniques allow the more precise analysis of the epiphysis.
Pubmed
Web of science
Create date
12/01/2016 14:22
Last modification date
20/08/2019 16:27
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