AGE AT DEATH ESTIMATION FROM THE SACRAL SIDE OF THE SACROILIAC JOINT

Author

Misty Marie Keahi Rego, The University of MontanaFollow

Year of Award

2008

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Type

Master of Arts (MA)

Degree Name

Anthropology (Forensic Anthropology Option)

Department or School/College

Department of Anthropology

Committee Chair

Randall Skelton

Commitee Members

Ashley McKeown, Ralph Judd

Keywords

aging, auricular surface, bioarchaeology, forensic anthropology, sacroiliac joint, sacrum, SI joint, skeletal remains

Abstract

This thesis presents a new method of age estimation in adult human skeletal remains based on age related degenerative changes of the sacral side of the sacro iliac joint. It is inspired by the existing method of aging based on age related degenerative changes of the iliac side of the sacro iliac joint developed by Lovejoy et al. (1985). This new method uses a ten-year-wide incremental scale of age estimation. The development and testing of this method was done using the Documented Collection from the University of New Mexico's Maxwell Museum of Anthropology. Results suggest that utilizing sacral deterioration to estimate an individual's standing as an old or young adult is more reliable than placing them into one of the ten-year-wide increments.

Recommended Citation

Rego, Misty Marie Keahi, "AGE AT DEATH ESTIMATION FROM THE SACRAL SIDE OF THE SACROILIAC JOINT" (2008). Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers. 106.
https://scholarworks.umt.edu/etd/106