Forensic odontology as a victim identification tool in mass disasters: A feasibility study in the Indian scenario
##plugins.themes.academic_pro.article.main##
Abstract
Aim: The aim of this study was to evaluate the awareness of practicing dentists about the subject of forensic odontology and to assess their willingness to maintain and share patient records. Materials and Methods: A blind questionnaire survey was carried out among 100 randomly selected practicing dentists in district Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh. Results: Most of the dentists interviewed were familiar with the subject of forensic odontology and its relation to dentistry, despite forensic dentistry having been newly introduced since 2007 into the undergraduate dental curriculum in India. However, dental records are maintained by only a few dentists, and only a very small percentage of them reported to have shared records, which may have helped in the identification of victims in a mass disaster. Conclusion: The result of our survey concluded that more awareness needs to be developed among practicing dentists regarding maintaining and sharing patient records for forensic odontology to succeed as a victim identification tool.
##plugins.themes.academic_pro.article.details##
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
How to Cite
Shamindra Sengupta, Vandana Sharma, Vineeta Gupta, Hitesh Vij, Ruchieka Vij, & Kanika Prabhat. (2014). Forensic odontology as a victim identification tool in mass disasters: A feasibility study in the Indian scenario. Journal of Forensic Dental Sciences, 6(1), 58–61. https://doi.org/10.4103/0975-1475.127774
References
- Caldas IM, Magalhães T, Afonso A. Establishing identity using cheiloscopy and palatoscopy. Forensic Sci Int 2007;165:1‑9.
- Saxena S, Sharma P, Gupta N. Experimental studies of forensic odontology to aid in the identification process. J Forensic Dent Sci 2010;2:69‑76.
- Rajendran R, Sivapathasundharam B. Shafer’s Textbook of Oral Pathology. 6th ed. India: Elsevier; 2009. p. 871.
- Acharya AB. Teaching forensic odontology: An opinion on its content and format*. Eur J Dent Educ 2006;10:137‑41.
- Higgins D, James H. Classifications used by Australian forensic odontologists in identification reports. J Forensic Odontostomatol 2006;24:32‑5.
- Vij K. Textbook of Forensic Medicine and Toxicology. 2nd ed. India: Elsevier; 2002. p. 71‑2.
- Gnanasundaram N. Tooth for truth (The glory of forensic dentistry). J Forensic Dent Sci 2010;2:51‑2.
- Chandra Shekar BR, Reddy CV. Role of dentist in person identification. Indian J Dent Res 2009;20:356‑60.
- Shetty M, Premalatha K. Study of palatal rugae pattern among the student population in Mangalore. J Indian Acad Forensic Med 2011;33:112‑5.
- Staurt LS, Leonard G. Forsenic application of palatal rugae in dental identification. Missouri: The Forsenic Examiner Spring; 2005. p. 44‑7.