Auricular Surface
Definition
The ear-shaped articular surface on the medial ilium that participates in the sacroiliac joint; its progressive surface quality changes from fine granularity to coarse porosity are used for age estimation across the adult lifespan.
- Location
- Medial ilium, at the sacroiliac joint
- Used for
- Adult age estimation
- Progression
- Fine granularity to coarse porosity with age
- Advantage
- Usable across the full adult lifespan
Common questions
How does auricular surface aging compare to pubic symphysis aging?+
The auricular surface remains informative into older age, while the pubic symphysis is most reliable for younger adults. The two are often used together, with wider age ranges expected as a person ages.
Why examine the auricular surface when the pubic symphysis is already usable?+
The two sites can be damaged or missing independently, and using both where possible narrows the estimated age range compared with relying on either alone.
Related terms
- ADBOU Transition Analysis
- A Bayesian software framework (Boldsen, Milner et al. 2002) that combines multiple skeletal age indicators with an adjustable prior age distribution to...
- Buckberry-Chamberlain Five-Trait Composite
- A 2002 revision of the auricular surface method scoring five discrete traits (transverse organisation, texture, microporosity, macroporosity, apical change) summed to a...
- Igarashi Revision
- A 2005 Japanese revision of the auricular surface method identifying slower degeneration rates in Japanese populations compared to European reference samples, requiring...
- Lovejoy Eight-Phase System
- A holistic scoring system for auricular surface age estimation (Lovejoy 1985) describing progressive surface texture, granularity, porosity, and retroauricular changes from young...
- McKern-Stewart System
- A three-component pubic symphysis scoring system (dorsal plateau, ventral rampart, symphyseal rim) derived from Korean War skeletal remains; effective for young military...
- Phase Compression Error
- The forensic reporting error of presenting a narrower age range than the reference method's documented accuracy supports, often to satisfy investigative demands...
- Pubic Symphysis
- The fibrocartilaginous joint at the midline anterior pelvis connecting the two pubic bones; its articular face undergoes progressive morphological changes used for...
- Suchey-Brooks System
- A six-phase scoring system for pubic symphysis age estimation, derived from 1,225 documented Los Angeles County autopsy individuals (1990), providing separate male...
- Todd System
- Thomas Wingate Todd's 1920 ten-phase pubic symphysis scoring system, derived from a cadaveric series at Western Reserve University; the foundational reference that...