Comparison of Nolla’s Method, Cameriere’s Indian-specific Method, and Acharya’s Indianspecific Regression Formula for Estimation of Dental Age in Puducherry and Cuddalore Population, Southern India

Introduction: Forensic dental age estimation plays a vital role in determining the identity of a deceased individual. There are numerous dental age estimation methods available to estimate dental age using radiographs based on tooth maturation. Aim: To compare Nolla’s method, Cameriere’s Indian-specific method, and Acharya’s Indian-specific regression formula in estimating dental age in the Puducherry and Cuddalore populations of South India. Materials and Methods: This retrospective study was conducted in the Department of Oral Medicine and Radiology at the Indira Gandhi Institute of Dental Sciences, Puducherry, India, between January 2021 and October 2022. The study included 448 panoramic radiographs (202 males and 246 females) of individuals aged between six and 17 years. Chronological age was recorded based on the subject’s date of birth. Dental age was estimated using Nolla’s method, Acharya’s Indian-specific regression formula, and Cameriere’s Indian-specific method. Two qualified and experienced oral radiologists evaluated all the samples to assess their reliability. Data were analysed using descriptive statistics, the Pearson’s correlation coefficient, and Student’s t-test. Results: Nolla’s method (excluding the third molar) revealed a mean age of 13.52±3.15 years, while Nolla’s method (including the third molar) revealed a mean age of 12.81±2.84 years. Acharya’s Indian-specific method revealed a mean age of 15.08±2.92 years, and Cameriere’s Indian-specific regression formula revealed a mean age of 11.51±2.19 years. The results showed that the age estimated by Nolla’s method (including the third molar) had a p-value of 0.93 (>0.05), indicating no significant differences between the estimated dental age and chronological age. The r-values for Acharya’s Indian-specific regression formula, Nolla’s method (excluding the third molar), Nolla’s method (including the third molar), and Cameriere’s Indian-specific method were found to be 0.682, 0.885, 0.847, and 0.849, respectively, indicating a strong positive correlation among the age estimation methods. Conclusion: Nolla’s method (including the third molar) was found to be the most accurate method for dental age estimation when compared with the other three methods in the Puducherry and Cuddalore populations.