The accuracy of dental panoramic radiography as an indicator of chronological age in Iranian individuals.

Growth rate is dependent on genetic and environmental factors and varies between the sexes, between individuals of the same population and between populations themselves. There is strong concern over the dental and bone testing procedures conducted to determine the age of young individuals for legal reasons. Inaccurate results would lead authorities to imprison some children in adult prisons, which are unsafe and inappropriate for minors. This study was designed to determine the relationship between dental age, the age from dental panoramic radiography, skeletal age and chronological age in patients referring to dental clinics of Yazd, Iran, for third molar surgery. The sample for the study consisted of 58 subjects between 15-25 years of age. The results indicated that estimating the age by examination of extracted lower wisdom teeth was most accurate. However, as use of this method i.e. extraction of tooth or dental surgery is not possible in normal individuals. Estimating the age from dental panoramic radiography showed high accuracy when applied to the patients.