Trotter and Gleser Formulae
Definition
Long-bone regression equations published in 1952 and 1958 (American war-dead and Korean War remains) for estimating living stature in Whites, Blacks, Mongoloids and Mexicans.
- Publication years
- 1952 and 1958
- Basis
- American war-dead and Korean War remains
- Method
- Long-bone regression equations
- Populations covered
- Whites, Blacks, Mongoloids, Mexicans
- Application
- Estimating living stature from skeletal long bones
Common questions
Why were the formulae revised between 1952 and 1958?+
The 1958 revision incorporated Korean War casualty data and corrected an earlier femur measurement protocol, which improved accuracy for the populations studied and is generally treated as the more reliable version for casework.
Do these formulae apply reliably outside the populations they were built from?+
Applying them to a population not represented in the original samples introduces bias, since limb proportions relative to stature vary by ancestry. Analysts typically prefer population-specific regression equations when they exist.
Related terms
- Biological Profile
- The four-part osteological description of an unidentified individual: sex, age range, population affinity (ancestry), and estimated stature. The profile constrains the pool...
- Epiphyseal Fusion
- The obliteration of the cartilaginous growth plate and bony union of the epiphysis with the diaphysis. Fusion sequence and timing form the...
- Forensic Anthropology
- The laboratory and scene-side discipline concerned with the analysis of skeletal and decomposed remains to establish biological profile, manner of death, trauma,...
- Glabella
- The midline prominence on the frontal bone between the superciliary arches. Scored 1 (flat, female) to 5 (highly prominent, male). Correlated with...
- Gustafson Method
- Dental ageing method based on six progressive changes in a single tooth: attrition, periodontosis, secondary dentine, cementum apposition, root resorption and root...
- Haversian System (Osteon)
- Cylindrical structural unit of compact bone with a central Haversian canal, concentric lamellae and osteocytes in lacunae; pattern and canal density differ...
- Mastoid Process
- The conical projection inferior to the external auditory meatus on the temporal bone. Attachment for sternocleidomastoid and splenius capitis muscles. Scored 1...
- Regression Formula
- Linear equation of the form Stature = a + b × bone length (in cm), used to estimate living stature from a...
- Sciatic Notch (Greater)
- Notch on the posterior border of the hip bone; wide and shallow in females (greater than 60 degrees), narrow and deep in...
- Sexual Dimorphism
- Systematic physical differences between biological males and females of a species. In teeth it is expressed mainly as size: males average larger...
- Subpubic Angle
- The angle at the inferior apex of the pubic arch where the two inferior pubic rami meet. Acute (below 90 degrees) in...