Radiographic changes in endodontically treated teeth submitted to drowning and burial simulations: is it a useful tool in forensic investigation?

Dental radiographs, endodontic treatment and materials are a source of useful forensic data. The response of dental materials to death-related events are widely studied and provide forensic evidence for experts. This study aimed to analyze the radiographic images of endodontically treated teeth submitted to burial and drowning simulation, verifying its forensic feasibility, applicability and usefulness.

Material and method: n=20 bovine incisor teeth were endodontically treated then divided into two groups: burial and drowning scenarios. Teeth were radiographed two times (before and after scenario) with an aluminium stepwedge, and optical density (OD) was assessed in each root third, in both radiographs, and then compared (ANOVA and Tukey test) for each scenario.

Results: Burial scenario did not significantly alter radiopacity. As for the drowning scenario, there was no difference in radiopacity between the root thirds before the test. After drowning, the apical third demonstrated lower OD (p<.05) than the other two thirds. Comparing the OD before and after drowning, medium third presented lower and cervical third demonstrated higher means (p<.05) after drowning.

Conclusion: We concluded that drowning conditions could alter the radiopacity of endodontically treated teeth, more specifically in the medium and cervical thirds. There is no evidence that this also occurs in burial situations. This has the potential to be useful in forensic casework as an initial sign of the type of ambient in which the body was supposedly exposed or set.