Post-mortem orthopantomography - an aid in screening for identification purposes

Ante-mortem orthopantomograms may be of great value in the identification o f human remains. This xray technique provides an overall view of the teeth and jaws and thus of numerous individual structural characteristics within a short time. Standardised post-mortem orthopantomography has previously no t been feasible in the forensic practice. The present study shows how ortho pantomography can be applied to identification procedures. The reproduction of ante-mortem x-ray conditions is implemented here in the production of p ost-mortem x-rays, using a purpose-designed radiographic tripod. For the fi rst time, account is taken not only of the size and structure but also of t he nature of the soft tissue covering of exhibits. For post-mortem preparat ion of these radiographs, appropriate positioning aids, a spinal column sub stitute and a soft tissue filter were constructed. Individual macerated jaw s as well as the complete cranium can now be positioned correctly in the up right orthopantomograph (OPG). The method presented expands the spectrum of forensic radiology for the individual case and in our opinion also offers a reliable aid for victim identification in the wake of mass disasters, air craft crashes and terrorist attacks, where a large number of bodies have to be identified under great pressure.