WHY DO WE FAIL IN AGING THE SKULL FROM THE SAGITTAL SUTURE

The controversy over the reliability of ectocranial suture status (ope n vs. closed) as an age estimation stimulated the pursuit of Meindl an d Lovejoy's suggestion (Meindl and Lovejoy [1985]Am. J. Phys. Anthropo l. 68:57-66) for large scale analysis. The extent of the sagittal sutu re closure was assessed in 3,636 skulls from the Hamann-Todd and Terry collections. The debate over whether cranial suture ossification repr esents a pathologic or an age-predictable pathologic process also stim ulated a comparison with age and two stress markers, hyperostosis fron talis interna and tuberculosis. Sagittal suture closure was found to b e age-independent and sexually biased. The wide confidence intervals ( for age) appear to preclude meaningful application of suture status fo r age determination. No correlation was found the tested biologic stre ssors. (C) 1997 Wiley-Liss, Inc.