Forensic odontology

Forensic odontology plays a narrow but important role in the modern forensic armoury. Put basically and simply the discipline can be divided into four areas:

In this first article only identification will be discussed.

Identification using dental data is not new. Historically, forensic dentistry has played a major role in identification methods. As far back as AD 50 in the time of the Emperor Nero, records show that his mistress's battered body was identified by her teeth. Other important historical incidents such as the ‘Paris Bazaar Fire’ (1898), the ‘Pyjama Girl Case’ (1934), ‘Dr Buck Ruxton Murders’ (1935), the ‘Identification of Adolf Hitler’ (1945) and the ‘Haigh Acid Bath Case’ (1949) illustrate the long history of association between forensic investigation and dental evidence. Some of these benchmark cases may be covered in detail in future articles. But this is not just a process relegated to the long-gone past, forensic odontology continues to play a pivotal role in not only the identification of the deceased, but also the prosecution of the perpetrators, for example Ted Bundy (1974) and Rosemary and Fred West (1994).