DETERMINATION OF SEX FROM FOOTPRINT DIMENSIONS AMONG NUPE ETHNIC GROUP IN MINNA NIGER STATE

Determination of personal identity is a basic and pivotal step in forensic investigations and medico legal practices. In anthropological cases, forensic identification is generally carried out through examination of the body or the remains for prints from the body. Thus, the footprint becomes an invaluable index of identification particularly when the whole body is very badly mutilated. This study was carried out to determine the relationship between footprint dimensions and sex among individuals of Nupe ethnic group of Niger State. Sample size of four hundred and twenty one (421) subjects, two hundred and eighty three (283) males and one hundred and thirty eight (138) females were used in this study. The footprints were gotten by placing the volunteers' foot on the ink pad and it was then transferred on an A4 paper, where the footprint dimensions were later measured with a meter rule. The results of this study show that sex differences were highly significant using toe lengths and breadth (P? 0.01) but the footprint indices shows no statistical significance. Footprint dimension is sexually dimorphic. Footprint dimensions can be used to determine sex in addition to or in absence of skeletons such as long bones and skull. It can be applied in forensics for medico legal cases, shoe designing, fashion design and industrial design to optimize products

A CHEILOSCOPIC STUDY IN RELATION TO FINGER PRINTS OF EBIRA ETHNIC GROUP, KOGI STATE, NIGERIA

Lip prints permanency, finger print as well as the number of easily observable and measurable characteristics have been one of the most suitable parameters for studying personal identification. The study, aimed at determining the relationship between lip and finger prints with relation to sex among Ebira Ethnic Group of Nigeria Four hundred and. ten subjects (205 males and 205 females) aged between 18-65 years, participated in the study. Fischer's formula or infinite population was used to calculate the optimal sample size. Lip prints of the participants were collected using lip gloss and microscopic slides pressed gently on the lips, ink powder is slightly blown on the slides to show the prints.A HP G3110 Scanjet Scanner (9000 x 4800 dpi resolution) which is a classical type of scanner was used to determine digital patterns of the fingers. SPSS version 20.0 was used in analysing the data. Statistical significance was put into consideration using one-way Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) when (P = 0.05 or P ? 0.05). The predominant lip print pattern of the upper and lower lip of both sexes distributed as Type II and Type IV which are sexually dimorphic, on both hands the most prominent finger print pattern was the loop for both female and males which shows no significant sex difference. The association between lip and finger prints was significant. This is very important in personal identification in forensics.

Estimation of Staute from Toe Lengths: An Evaluation of the Hausa Population in Nigeria Using Linear Modeling.

Background: Statue determination has remained a basic requirement in determining human identity and ethnicity. Usually in situations when whole anatomical structures are unavailable, forensic expert would be expected to rely on smaller structures such as the phalanges, patella ribs and other fragmentary bones. Aim: The present study evaluates toe anthropometry and its usability as predictors of the stature of the Hausa ethnic group in Nigeria. Methods: Six hundred and sixty four (664) subjects comprising of equal percentage of adult males and females were included in the study group. Toe lengths of both feet (coded as big toe or first toe [1T] to the fifth toes [5T]) were measured using a digital Vernier calliper with accuracy of 0.01mm while stature was taken using a stadiometer with accuracy of 0.1m. SPSS (IBM®) t-test was to evaluate gender difference in the measured dimensions; while SPSS and XLSTAT (2015) Automatic & Generalized Linear Modelling were used to determine the predictability of stature from the toe lengths. The significance level was set at 95% as P≤0.05 was considered significant. Results: The automatic (multiple) regression analysis showed that the males displayed significantly higher mean values than the females for all measured parameters (P<0.001). The general population regression formulae were derived and only three (3) variables (R2T, R5T and L3T) significant contributors to the models for stature prediction for the general Gp (R2=0.385, F[3, 660]=137.68, P<0.001) and female F (R2=0.137, F[3, 328]=17.367, P<0.001) population, while only the L.1T could predict male M stature (R2=0.139, F[1, 330] = 54.489, P<0.001). Single regression gender-specific formulae were derived for the measurements that provided significant R2 values. Conclusion: This study suggested that estimation of a stature of Hausa ethnic group could be made possible by using specific toe measurements. However, lengths of toe may not be so reliable in the estimation of stature, but could be used for sex discrimination in forensic investigation.

Estimation of staute from toe lengths: an evaluation of the Hausa population in Nigeria using linear modeling

Background: Statue determination has remained a basic requirement in determining human identity and ethnicity. Usually in situations when whole anatomical structures are unavailable, forensic expert would be expected to rely on smaller structures such as the phalanges, patella ribs and other fragmentary bones. Aim: The present study evaluates toe anthropometry and its usability as predictors of the stature of the Hausa ethnic group in Nigeria. Methods: Six hundred and sixty four (664) subjects comprising of equal percentage of adult males and females were included in the study group. Toe lengths of both feet (coded as big toe or first toe [1T] to the fifth toes [5T]) were measured using a digital Vernier calliper with accuracy of 0.01mm while stature was taken using a stadiometer with accuracy of 0.1m. SPSS (IBM®) t-test was to evaluate gender difference in the measured dimensions; while SPSS and XLSTAT (2015) Automatic & Generalized Linear Modelling were used to determine the predictability of stature from the toe lengths. The significance level was set at 95% as P ≤ 0.05 was considered significant. Results: The automatic (multiple) regression analysis showed that the males displayed significantly higher mean values than the females for all measured parameters (P<0.001). The general population regression formulae were derived and only three (3) variables (R2T, R5T and L3T) significant contributors to the models for stature prediction for the general Gp (R2=0.385, F[3, 660]=137.68, P<0.001) and female F (R2=0.137, F[3, 328]=17.367, P<0.001) population, while only the L.1T could predict male M stature (R2=0.139, F[1, 330] = 54.489, P<0.001). Single regression gender-specific formulae were derived for the measurements that provided significant R2 values. Conclusion: This study suggested that estimation of a stature of Hausa ethnic group could be made possible by using specific toe measurements. However, lengths of toe may not be so reliable in the estimation of stature, but could be used for sex discrimination in forensic investigation