Gender Dimorphism of Crania in Young Jordanian Adults: Discriminant Function Analysis Approach for Gender Prediction

Abstract

Background: Determination of gender using craniofacial characteristics, though made common worldwide, Jordan is still lacking of such investigation. The aim of this study was to develop a gender determination technique for young Jordanian adult population using osteometric data, from cephalometric images, and discriminant function analysis.

Methods: A total of 146 randomly selected digital lateral cephalometric radiographs of fully dentate young adult patients were used in the investigation; 47 patients were males and 99 were females. For each lateral cephalometric radiograph 19 craniofacial skeletal landmarks were digitized by one observer using a customized analysis created in Viewbox 4-Cephalometric Software subroutines. Utilizing the digitized landmarks, 18 measurements that comprised 14 linear, three angular and one proportional parameters were carried out.

Results: The results demonstrated that, with the exception of the Menton to Gonion distance, i.e. the length of the mandibular body, the mean values of all other parameters of male subjects were statistically significantly larger (P < 0.05) than those for females. Mastoid height was found to be the best single predictor of gender and can provide an accuracy rate of 82.2%. The stepwise method revealed four dimensions (mastoid height, mastoid width, glabella to supraglabellare-nasion distance, and the length of skull base) were found to form the best combination of parameters most precisely to depict the best possible prediction, raising the classification accuracy up to 87.7%.

Conclusions: A discriminant function equation specific for Jordanian population has been derived from cranio-mandibular variables. The equation can now be used for a calculable and more precise prediction of gender of Jordanian young adult population.

J Curr Surg. 2014;4(3):76-85
doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.14740/jcs241w