European Journal of Biomedical and Pharmaceutical Sciences

ESTIMATION OF STATURE FROM CRANIOFACIAL VARIABLES IN HAUSAS OF NIGERIA

Adefisan Idowu Elijah*, Oladipo Gabriel Sunday, Paul Chikwuogwo Wokpeogu

ABSTRACT

Stature is one of the “big four” of forensic anthropology. It makes up a very important aspect of personal identity when there is an identity crisis. The anatomy of the craniofacial complex is relatively resistant to taphonomic changes because of its osseous component. The landmarks are easy to locate and make them suitable for the anthropological assessment of stature. There are insufficient studies on the estimation of stature from craniofacial variables in the Nigerian population. This study aimed to estimate stature from craniofacial variables of the Hausas of northern Nigeria. 504 students and staff (331 males and 173 females) of the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, Nigeria within the age range of 18 - 55 participated in the study. 12 craniofacial variables and living stature were taken on each participant following standardized anthropometric procedures. Karl Pearson’s correlation and stepwise multivariate regression analysis were carried out on the data to estimate stature. The results from the univariate analysis revealed weak correlations of craniofacial variables with stature and cannot be used for the estimation of stature. However, stepwise multivariate regression analysis produced better results. From this study; we conclude that using stepwise multivariate regression analysis, stature can be inferred from craniofacial variables but with caution because it is a population-specific approach.

Keywords: stature, craniofacial, variables, Hausas.