Identification of Population Affinity Using Dental Traits: A Narrative Review in Forensic Odontology
Atreya A. Menezes R.G. Bolla S.R. Dahal S.
November 2025John Wiley and Sons Inc
Health Science Reports
2025#8Issue 11
Background and Aim: Forensic odontology utilizes dental morphology to estimate population affinity in medico-legal cases. This review examines the role of dental traits in human identification, emphasizing their limitations in conclusively estimating ancestry or ethnicity. Methods: A comprehensive search was conducted across databases such as PubMed, ScienceDirect, Scopus and Web of Science using key terms - race, ancestry, ethnicity, population affinity and forensic odontology. Literature studying race/ancestry (older studies) and population affinity (newer studies) was reviewed. Results: All dental features are characterized by a certain degree of variation across human populations. On one hand, tooth characteristics may seem useful for identifying ancestry and ethnicity. Yet, combining dental traits with other evidence may improve ancestry estimation. Training observers with additional sources and practical skills improves accuracy and produces more reliable results. The observational method, while systematic, risks oversimplifying contextual factors. However, in forensic odontology, the broader social context of this approach must be considered, as it evaluates whether race is a biological notion. Conclusions: Traditional terms like race and ancestry should be replaced by population affinity. Future recommendations include developing improved methods to enhance result accuracy.
ancestry , Carabellis cusp , forensic odontology , odontometry , population affinity
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Department of Forensic Medicine, Lumbini Medical College, Palpa, Nepal
Forensic Medicine Division, Department of Pathology, College of Medicine, Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University, Dammam, Saudi Arabia
Department of Biomedical Sciences, School of Medicine, Nazarbayev University, Astana, Kazakhstan
Department of Oral Pathology and Forensic Dentistry, Tribhuvan University Institute of Medicine Maharajgunj Medical Campus, Kathmandu, Nepal
Department of Forensic Medicine
Forensic Medicine Division
Department of Biomedical Sciences
Department of Oral Pathology and Forensic Dentistry
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