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Estimation of height from the length of ! The Author(s) 2015
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DOI: 10.1177/0025802415595057
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Nilesh Keshav Tumram1, Soniya Bhaurao Parchake2,

Rajesh Vaijnathrao Bardale1 and Pradeep Gangadhar Dixit1

Abstract
Stature estimation is one of the essential early steps during forensic investigation of human skeletal remains. The aim of
the present study was to obtain a linear regression formula for estimating stature from sternal length of a central Indian
population. The study includes 92 male cadavers brought for medico-legal autopsies. The linear regression equations
were derived from manubrium, mesosternum and the total sternal length. The regression model provided a 95%
confidence interval of 14.8 cm and a correlation coefficient of 0.55. Compared with other studies, regression formulae
based on the length of the sternum provided considerably larger standard errors than that based on long bone lengths.
The study indicates that sternal length in relation with body stature shows a moderate positive correlation and relatively
low reliability in estimating stature, and has limited forensic value.

Keywords
Forensic anthropology, stature, sternum, cadaver, India

fresh sternal length can be used for stature estima-

Introduction
Establishment of the identity of skeletal remains car-
ries remarkable forensic importance.1 Stature offers
one of the important aspects of an individual’s iden-
tification, and its determination is one of the signifi-
cant initial steps during forensic analysis of the
skeletal remains.2 Various means of anthropometric
measurements of the skeleton are used in determining
stature.2–14 Such determination is built on the rela-
15
tions between skeletal component and stature. It is
a generally accepted fact that stature has a direct rela-
tion to the length of various bones.16,17 Different
linear regression equations are derived to estimate
stature from bone length.
The long bones are widely used for accurate stature
estimation. However, in certain scenarios such as
mass disasters or crime involving dismemberment of
the victim, the long bones may not be available or
complete. In such cases, the medico-legal professional
requires an alternative solution for stature estima-
tion.18,19 Stature estimation from sternal measure-
ments has received recent attention.20–23 The
sternum may be useful in stature estimation because
it is easily removed and dissected from the rib cage or
torso. Very few studies has been done for stature esti-
mation from the sternal bone.20–23 Most of these stu-
dies have focused on stature estimation from dry and
macerated sternums. However, when a quick estimate
is required and maceration cannot be carried out,
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tion.23 The goal of present study was to find an asso-
ciation between the size of sternum and stature, which
could be useful in stature estimation of mutilated
human remains.
Materials and methods
Setting and population
The present study was conducted in the Department
of Forensic Medicine, Government Medical College,
Nagpur, Central India. Cadaver and sternum length
was obtained from 92 male cases. The age of the indi-
viduals was retrieved from the inquest documents of
the police and confirmed from the lawful heirs of the
deceased. Decomposed, charred, mutilated bodies and
bodies having physical anomalies were excluded from
the study.
1
Department of Forensic Medicine, Government Medical College and
Hospital, Nagpur, Maharashtra, India
2
Department of Anatomy, Government Medical College and Hospital,
Nagpur, Maharashtra, India
Corresponding author:
Nilesh Keshav Tumram, Department of Forensic Medicine,
Government Medical College and Hospital, Nagpur – 440 003
Maharashtra State, India.
Email: ntumram@rediffmail.com, ntumram@gmail.com
2 Medicine, Science and the Law 0(0)

or incisura jugularis (jugular notch) to the centre of

Methodology
The cadaveric length was measured in the supine pos-
ition between the vertex of the head and the heel with
a steel measuring tape to the nearest 0.1 cm.20,24 To
this, a correction factor of 2.5 cm was applied as
described by Trotter and Gleser as a measure of
living standing height.24 The body was kept in a
supine position on a flat, hard-surfaced autopsy
table with the knee and hip joint extended, and the
neck and feet in a neutral position.
The sternum was removed as a single piece via an
incision at the sternoclavicular joints and at the junctions
of all seven rib costal cartilages. After removal, the ster-
num was cleaned thoroughly by manually stripping the
soft tissue as much as possible and was allowed to air dry.
No further maceration was performed. The sternum was
measured by taking midline measurements with a vernier
caliper according to the methods adopted by Ashley.25
The main concern with this measurement was to
ensure that the end points of the caliper were touching
the bone itself, without interference from any soft
tissue, by removing as much soft tissue as possible
and exposing the bony surface (Figure 1). The ster-
num was subsequently replaced after the necessary
measurements and was not preserved beyond autopsy.
the manubrio-mesosternal junction (angle of Louis) in
midsagittal plane.
Length of the mesosternum
This is the straight measurement from the manubrio-
mesosternal junction (angle of Louis) to the xiphister-
nal junction in the midsagittal plane. In fresh sterna,
there is always a concern about identifying the point
for taking the measurement, especially the xiphister-
nal joint. This is done by marking the lower end of the
two lateral articular demi-facets for the seventh costal
cartilage along the lateral borders of the mesosternum
to distinguish the mesosternum from the xiphoid
process.
Total sternal length
This is a straight measurement on the anterior surface
of the sternum from the centre of the suprasternal
notch or incisura jugularis (jugular notch) to the
centre of the xiphisternal junction in the midsagittal
plane. The xiphoid process was not taken into consid-
eration in the metric study because of the extreme
variability of its length.20

Length of the manubrium Data analysis

This is a straight measurement on the anterior surface The data were analysed using SPSS for Windows
of sternum from the centre of the suprasternal notch v17.026 to derive a linear regression equation for

Figure 1. (a) Sternum: A, incisura jugularis (jugular notch); B, manubrium; C, manubrio-mesosternal joint (angle of Louis); D, mesosternum;
E, xiphisternal joint; F, xiphisternum. The red colour marked the points of measurement. (b) Sternal measurements by vernier caliper.
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Tumram et al. 3

stature estimation from the manubrium, the mesoster-
num and the total sternal length of a male. For regres-
sion analysis, the dependent variable was taken as the
body length (stature), while the independent variable
was different sternal lengths (manubrium, mesoster-
num and total sternal length). The standard error of
estimate and 95% confidence intervals for regression
were computed. Here, we wanted to evaluate if the
cadaver length was incorporated in the 95%
confidence interval of estimated stature rather than
comparing the cadaver length and point stature
estimate.
Inter-observer error was estimated to test the reli-
ability of the data by measuring the sternum by two
different researchers. Intra-observer error was not
assessed, as the sternum was not preserved after aut-
opsy. Inter-observer error was estimated by calculat-
ing the intra-class correlation coefficient.

Results
Table 1. Age and sex distribution of cases.
From different age groups, a total of 92 males were
Age group (years) Males (n ¼ 92) Mean SD
studied for estimation of stature by sternal measure-
21–30 40 24.7 4.42 ments (Table 1). When grouped by decade, most cases
31–40 16 35.0 3.34 were in the third decade of life.
41–50 12 46.8 3.58 As shown in Table 2, the cadaver length ranged
51–60 12 56.0 3.46 from 147.5 to 180.5 cm, with a mean (SD) length of
60–70 12 64.0 3.30
160.8 (8.8) cm. The mean total sternal length was
14.59 (1.0) cm (range 12.5–17.0 cm).

Table 2. Descriptive statistical data of sternal length in relation to body stature in males.

Group Sternal length Range (cm) Mean (cm) SD (cm) 95% confidence interval of mean

Male Total sternal 12.5–17 14.59 1.0 1.441

Manubrium 3–6.1 4.65 0.6 0.086
Mesosternum 8–12 9.89 0.87 0.125
Cadaveric length 147.5–180.5 160.82 8.8 1.262

Figure 2. Correlation of the manubrium with cadaveric length.

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4 Medicine, Science and the Law 0(0)

Figure 3. Correlation of the mesosternum with cadaveric length.

Figure 4. Correlation of total sternal length with cadaveric length.

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 Tumram et al.
Table 3. Mechanism of death distribution.
Group Sternal length Regression formulae*
Male Total sterna Y ¼ 4.8 X1 þ 90.65
Manubrium Y ¼ 6.44 X2 þ 130.84
Mesosternum Y ¼ 2.53 X3 þ 135.55
*Where Y is stature (cadaveric length), and X is sternum length.
Table 4. Cadaveric length (cm) in different sternum studies.
Source and population Cadaveric length (SD) (cm)
Menezes (South Indian)18
166.47 (7.22)
Marinho et al.21 167.9 (6.9)
Singh (Northwest Indian) 20
168.1 (7.19)
Present study 160.8 (8.8)
A simple regression formula was obtained to estimate
the stature from the length of the sternum (Table 3 and
Figures 2–4). There was a moderately positive correl-
ation between total sternal length and cadaveric length
(R ¼ 0.55). A better correlation was seen between total
sternal length and cadaveric length than with manu-
brium or mesosternal length and cadaveric length.
Similarly, a better correlation was observed between
manubrium length and cadaveric length than the mesos-
ternum length and cadaveric length. The standard error
of estimate in the study was 7.4 cm for total sternal
length, 7.9 cm for the manubrium and 8.5 cm for the
mesosternum (Table 3). The intra-class correlation coef-
ficient (ICC ¼ 0.992, [95% CI 0.950–0.999]) shows a
good correlation between the measurements of the two
researchers.
Discussion
Stature estimation from various bones, especially the
long bones, have been done by different research-
ers.27–37 Nothing had been published about sternum
length since Dwight et al., a span of almost one cen-
tury.38 Stature estimation from sternal measurements
has received recent attention. Most studies have dealt
with stature estimation from a dry sternum.20–22
Recently, Marinho et al.23 studied fresh sterna for
stature estimation to ascertain its applicability in
forensic practice.
In the present study, the stature was estimated
from the fresh sterna of central Indian males. The
mean stature for this group was 160.82 (8.8) cm, com-
paratively shorter than that found in other studies of
Indian populations (Table 4).
In the present study, the total sternal length
showed a moderate correlation coefficient in estimat-
ing stature. The correlation coefficient for total sternal
20
length in our study was 0.55. Menezes et al. and
Peiru et al.21 showed a better correlation coefficient
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5
Standard error 95% confidence
R R2 Adjusted R of estimate (cm) interval (cm)
0.55 0.302 0.29 7.4 14.2
0.44 0.197 0.18 7.9 15.4
0.25 0.06 0.05 8.5 16.9
than our study. However, in contrast to our study,
Singh et al.22 and Marinho et al.23 showed a weaker
correlation coefficient for total sternal length22,23
(Table 5). These variations may be due to the large
sample size of the present study and probably due to
variance in ethnic, secular,39 environmental,40 socio-
economic or nutritional factors41 between the popu-
lation groups.
Only Peiru et al.21 and Singh et al.22 studied the
manubrium and the mesosternal part of the sternum
for stature estimation. In our study, the correlation
coefficient for the manubrium and mesosternal length
with the cadaveric length was weaker than that in
Peiru et al.21 While Singh et al.22 showed a weaker
correlation of cadaveric length with the manubrium
and mesosternal length, Peiru et al.21 showed a better
correlation coefficient. Both Peiru et al.21 and
Menezes et al.20 had taken very small samples for
their study, which might be one of the reasons for
such a high correlation coefficient (Table 5).
The standard error of estimate in the present study
for the total sternum length was 7.4 cm. The standard
error of estimate was comparatively higher than all
the other studies. The manubrium and mesosternal
length also showed a higher standard error of esti-
mate. Though Menezes et al.20 showed the smallest
standard error of estimate, the confidence interval
obtained was still large, and the correlation coefficient
was always <0.7. Therefore, these studies indicate
that with the same stature, individuals vary consider-
ably with regard to their sternum length. Thus, sternal
length is comparatively correlated less with stature
and thus is reliable for stature estimation in the cen-
tral Indian population.
A question may be raised about whether results
obtained by using a fresh sternum for estimating stat-
ure may be biased. However, this is unlikely, as any
error tends to be systematic. This has been clearly
described by Marinho et al.23 However, the formula
obtained in the study is more applicable to the fresh
sternum and cannot be applied to dry macerated ster-
num.23 Several studies have demonstrated that differ-
ent stature estimation methods are not universally
applicable, and a model developed from a specific
population may not give reliable estimates when
applied to another population group.23 Body propor-
tions may vary among individuals from developed
countries and developing countries.42 This occurs
6 Medicine, Science and the Law 0(0)
Table 5. Correlation coefficients by different investigators.
Peiru et al.19 Singh et al.20
Sternal length (n ¼ 28) (n ¼ 252)
Total sterna 0.715 0.318
Manubrium 0.566 0.191
Mesosternum 0.578 0.255
mostly from differences in proportion between stature
and the bone size that results from differences in
environmental conditions during growth.42
Estimation of stature is an important aspect in
identifying skeletal remains or mutilated bodies.
Sternum length can be used as an alternative
method when a quick estimate is required and when
maceration cannot be carried out, as it is easily
removed and dissected from either a relatively fresh
or a badly decomposed body. In the present study, the
sternum length has a comparatively weaker correl-
ation coefficient with stature and higher standard
error of estimate in regression analysis. Our study
concludes that the sternum may be of some import-
ance for stature estimation only when long bones are
not available. However, the study does not provide
support for the use of sternal length as a reliable esti-
mator of stature in mutilated human skeletal remains,
either skeletonised or fleshed. Thus, a medico-legal
professional must exercise caution if estimating stat-
ure from a fresh cadaveric sternum.
Acknowledgements
We wish to thank Drs VN Ambade, SG Dhawne and SK
Meshram for their invaluable guidance. We also wish to
thank to Drs JL Borkar, HV Pathak and AY Deshmukh
for their support and encouragement to carry out this work.
Conflict of interests
All authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.
Funding
This research received no specific grant from any funding
agency in the public, commercial or not-for-profit sectors.
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