Investigation of Bite-Marks

¹ University of Oslo, Norway

The evolution of bite-mark investigations, as well as the guiding principles of the final report, have been dealt with. Credit was given to Sörup,^l who was the first to publish an analysis of bite-marks. His method, odontoscopy, was explained. Other methods have been developed from this initial work. The method of using diapositives was mentioned. Research work on the so-called typical profile bite in foodstuff was discussed.^{3, 4} The dynamics of the bite action in human tissue, as presented by Korkhaus,⁵ were described. The possibility of giving a positive statement of identity in cases of bite-mark identification was discussed. It was pointed out that all bite-mark cases should be handled by a highly trained odontologic expert. If no such expert is available, all bite-mark cases should, nevertheless, be referred to a dental school. A positive identification of bite-marks should always be stated by at least two colleagues.