Personal Identification on the Basis of Antemortem and Postmortem Radiographs

Abstract

This report documents three recent cases in Hungary in which personal identification was achieved by comparison of antemortem and postmortem radiographs. These cases demonstrate three examples of radiological identification. In Hungary, comparison methods play an important role in personal identification because of the lack of adequate dental records for most of the population. The authors emphasize that in cases where antemortem radiographs and photographs are available, radiographic comparison is deemed preferable to photographic superimposition, because it is more technically exacting and permits the matching of a potentially larger number of anatomical, pathological or traumatic features.