Human cranial vault thickness in relation to age, sex and general body build in a South Indian population

Background & Objectives : During legal investigations, the forensic pathologist is often required to give an opinion regarding personal identification of the deceased. The bone that is among the most helpful for these investigations is the skull. As to my knowledge, this is the first study of its kind in this part of the world where an attempt is made to find any correlation between cranial vault thickness, age sex and general body build in a population group. Methods: Materials for the present study consists of eighty two South Indian origin victims autopsied at the mortuary of A. J. Institute of Medical Sciences, Mangaluru, Karnataka between November 2016 and October 2018. The victims comprised of both the genders in the age group of 18-80 years belonging to various parts of South India (Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana & Union territories of Lakshadweep & Pondicherry). Results : The victims in the age group of 18-80 years belonging to various parts of South India The average stature among males was 168.69 ± 10.98 and ranged from 148cm and 192cm. There was found to be a significant correlation between the occipital thickness and the sexes. There was found to be no significant correlation between different areas of cranial vault thickness with respect to each other and also between cranial vault thickness with height, weight or general body build. Interpretation & Conclusion: The present study emphasizes the utility of cranial vault thickness in identifying individuals. It also provides useful insights in the fields of calvarial bone grafting and neurosurgery