Assessment of the accuracy of three-dimensional manual craniofacial reconstruction: a series of 25 controlled cases

The aim of this work was to estimate the accuracy of craniofacial reconstruction (CFR), from a series of 25 controlled cases. Three protocols of blind CFRs (exhibiting an increasing complexity from A to C) were assessed in this paper, allowing comparison of the CFR with the actual face of the deceased. The whole results showed that an excellent, or good, to middle resemblance (between the blind CFR and the actual face of the subject) was reached in 9 out of 25 cases, but the success gradually increased from the A to the C protocol of CFR, reaching six cases out of eight in the latter. Statistical comparison of measurements (between the blind CFR and the actual face) was also achieved, revealing that some anthropological distances were constantly underestimated or overestimated. This experiment shows that a thorough anthropological, odontological, and X-ray analysis is indispensable before performing a CFR, and these encouraging results justify further efforts of research in this field.

[1]  G Quatrehomme,et al.  A fully three-dimensional method for facial reconstruction based on deformable models. , 1997, Journal of forensic sciences.

[2]  J. Rhine,et al.  Thickness of facial tissues in American blacks. , 1980, Journal of forensic sciences.

[3]  Quatrehomme,et al.  La superposition, la restauration et la reconstruction faciales : une aide à l'identification médico-légale. , 1999 .

[4]  G. Macho,et al.  An appraisal of plastic reconstruction of the external nose. , 1986, Journal of forensic sciences.

[5]  S Miyasaka,et al.  Computer-assisted facial image identification system using a 3-D physiognomic range finder. , 2000, Forensic science international.

[6]  P Vanezi,et al.  Facial reconstruction using 3-D computer graphics. , 2000, Forensic science international.

[7]  W A Aulsebrook,et al.  Facial soft-tissue thicknesses in the adult male Zulu. , 1996, Forensic science international.

[8]  C N Stephan,et al.  Building faces from dry skulls: are they recognized above chance rates? , 2001, Journal of forensic sciences.

[9]  P Vanezis,et al.  Application of 3-D computer graphics for facial reconstruction and comparison with sculpting techniques. , 1989, Forensic science international.

[10]  P. -F. Puech,et al.  Portrait of the ’temple child‘, a missing-link in the case of Louis XVII , 2005, International Journal of Legal Medicine.

[11]  V M Phillips,et al.  Facial reconstruction: utilization of computerized tomography to measure facial tissue thickness in a mixed racial population. , 1996, Forensic science international.

[12]  D. Ranson,et al.  CRANIOFACIAL IDENTIFICATION IN FORENSIC MEDICINE , 1998 .

[13]  Andreas Schmeling,et al.  Reference data for the Thiemann–Nitz method of assessing skeletal age for the purpose of forensic age estimation , 2005, International Journal of Legal Medicine.

[14]  Sven De Greef,et al.  Three-dimensional cranio-facial reconstruction in forensic identification: latest progress and new tendencies in the 21st century. , 2005, Journal of forensic sciences.

[15]  W. A. Aulsebrook.  FACIAL IDENTIFICATION | Facial Tissue Thickness in Facial Reconstruction , 2000 .

[16]  I H El-Mehallawi,et al.  Ultrasonic assessment of facial soft tissue thicknesses in adult Egyptians. , 2001, Forensic science international.

[17]  C N Stephan,et al.  Recognition by forensic facial approximation: case specific examples and empirical tests. , 2006, Forensic science international.

[18]  Norman R Goodman,et al.  Identifying skeletal remains found in a sewer. , 2002, Journal of the American Dental Association.

[19]  Snow Cc,et al.  From skull to visage. , 1979 .

[20]  Andreas Schmeling,et al.  Validation of common classification systems for assessing the mineralization of third molars , 2004, International Journal of Legal Medicine.

[21]  G Quatrehomme,et al.  Method for identifying putrefied corpses by facial casting. , 1995, Forensic science international.

[22]  G. Quatrehomme,et al.  FACIAL IDENTIFICATION | Computerized Facial Reconstruction , 2000 .

[23]  Ronald Schulz,et al.  The impact of economic progress and modernization in medicine on the ossification of hand and wrist , 2006, International Journal of Legal Medicine.

[24]  T. M. Graber,et al.  An atlas and manual of cephalometric radiography , 1982 .

[25]  M. Yoshino,et al.  FACIAL IDENTIFICATION |Skull-photo Superimposition , 2000 .

[26]  Carl N Stephan,et al.  Facial Soft Tissue Thicknesses in Australian Adult Cadavers * , 2006, Journal of forensic sciences.

[27]  P Vanezis,et al.  Cranio-Facial Reconstruction in Forensic Identification — Historical Development and a Review of Current Practice , 2000, Medicine, science, and the law.

[28]  Ronald Schulz,et al.  The influence of slice thickness on assessment of clavicle ossification in forensic age diagnostics , 2005, International Journal of Legal Medicine.

[29]  Gérald Quatrehomme.  Reconstruction faciale : intérêt anthropologique et médico-légal , 2000 .

[30]  G Quatrehomme,et al.  Facial casting as a method to help identify severely disfigured corpses. , 1996, Journal of forensic sciences.

[31]  W. M. Krogman.  The human skeleton in forensic medicine. I. , 1963, Postgraduate medicine.

[32]  Robert M. George,et al.  The Lateral Craniographic Method of Facial Reconstruction , 1987 .

[33]  R Evenhouse,et al.  Computer-aided forensic facial reconstruction , 1991, Other Conferences.

[34]  Paul Suetens,et al.  Craniofacial reconstruction using a combined statistical model of face shape and soft tissue depths: methodology and validation. , 2006, Forensic science international.

[35]  B. P. Gatliff,et al.  From skull to visage. , 1979, The Journal of biocommunication.

[36]  B Hill,et al.  Rebuilding the face of George Buchanan (1506-1582). , 1996, The Journal of audiovisual media in medicine.

[37]  W A Aulsebrook,et al.  Superimposition and reconstruction in forensic facial identification: a survey. , 1995, Forensic science international.

[38]  J. Prieto,et al.  Forensic anthropology in Spain from the forensic medicine perspective , 2008 .

[39]  Miet Loubele,et al.  Semi-automated ultrasound facial soft tissue depth registration: method and validation. , 2005, Journal of forensic sciences.

[40]  S R Arridge,et al.  Three-dimensional visualization of the face and skull using computerized tomography and laser scanning techniques. , 1987, European Journal of Orthodontics.

[41]  Maciej Henneberg,et al.  Variation in soft-tissue thicknesses on the human face and their relation to craniometric dimensions. , 2002, American journal of physical anthropology.

[42]  M. Marks.  Computer-Graphic Facial Reconstruction , 2005 .

[43]  D T Reay,et al.  Use of facial approximation techniques in identification of Green River serial murder victims. , 1991, The American journal of forensic medicine and pathology.

[44]  S. Rogers,et al.  Personal Identification from Human Remains , 1987 .

[45]  H. Ellis,et al.  Perceiving and remembering faces , 1983 .

[46]  C N Stephan,et al.  Anthropological facial 'reconstruction--recognizing the fallacies, 'unembracing' the errors, and realizing method limits. , 2003, Science & justice : journal of the Forensic Science Society.

[47]  S Miyasaka,et al.  The computer-aided facial reconstruction system. , 1995, Forensic science international.

[48]  C N Stephan,et al.  Assessing facial approximation accuracy: how do resemblance ratings of disparate faces compare to recognition tests? , 2006, Forensic science international.

[49]  Paul Suetens,et al.  Computerized craniofacial reconstruction using CT-derived implicit surface representations. , 2006, Forensic science international.

[50]  Ronald Schulz,et al.  Studies on the time frame for ossification of the medial epiphysis of the clavicle as revealed by CT scans , 2005, International Journal of Legal Medicine.

[51]  Mehmet Yaşar İşcan,et al.  Forensic Analysis of the Skull , 2004 .

[52]  Alice M. Brues,et al.  Identification of Skeletal Remains , 1958 .

[53]  Carl N Stephan,et al.  Do resemblance ratings measure the accuracy of facial approximations? , 2002, Journal of forensic sciences.

[54]  B. P. Gatliff,et al.  Reconstruction of facial features from the skull: an evaluation of its usefulness in forensic anthropology. , 1970, American journal of physical anthropology.

[55]  Ted A. Rathbun,et al.  Human Identification: Case Studies in Forensic Anthropology , 1984 .

[56]  P. Vanezis,et al.  Techniques in facial identification: Computer-aided facial reconstruction using a laser scanner and video superimposition , 2005, International Journal of Legal Medicine.

[57]  D. Vandermeulen,et al.  Large-scale in-vivo Caucasian facial soft tissue thickness database for craniofacial reconstruction. , 2006, Forensic science international.

[58]  L A Nelson,et al.  The application of volume deformation to three-dimensional facial reconstruction: a comparison with previous techniques. , 1998, Forensic science international.

[59]  Mineo Yoshino,et al.  Facial soft tissue thickness in Japanese female children. , 2005, Forensic science international.