Stature estimation by Carrea's index and its reliability in different types of dental alignment.

Stature is a measurable feature of the body, useful in human identification, which may include or exclude an individual from a missing persons list. The aim of this study is to analyze the Carrea´s index for stature estimation in dental arches with normal dentition, crowding and diastema. Plaster casts of 51 students of the Federal University of Paraíba were analyzed. Each hemiarch was divided according to the dental position, and the elements were measured with divider and digital calipers. Considering the normal and crowded dentition, the Carrea´s index presented a satisfactory success percentage, between 72.2% and 95.2%, with no statistically significant difference between sexes or between right and left sides. The presence of diastema reduced the number of matches to less than 62.5%. It was concluded that the Carrea´s index is a reliable method for height estimation in arches with normal and crowded dentitions, useful in males and females, and in the right and left sides. However, the method was not efficient in hemiarches with diastema.