How are people identified by dental records? Surely not everyone has dental records.
by 
Massey
ANSWERS: 4
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I assume you mean those that are deceased and must be identified. The task of identifying an individual by matching their teeth to a dental record is usually done by an odontologist, coroner, or medical examiner. This is done by comparing dental x-rays to the teeth of a decedent. True, not everyone has a dental record so other identifiers must be used in those cases. Dental records are just a simple way of identifying an individual because it is one of the most accurate methods. As a result, one hears a lot about people being identified from their dental records. It is not the only way identifications can be made and/or are made. Sometimes if dental records are not available, an individual is identified by sight, a tattoo, or a medical record that can link healed bone breakage and x-rays to a decedent (a forensic anthropologist or pathologist can do such a thing). Rest assured, a body can be identified by many things other than dental records.
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But how are the dental records obtained? Most people don't carry around their dentist's name, and I wouldn't know the name of my family members' or friends' dentists. Is there a registry somewhere that dentists consult to see if one of their patients died and the police need to confirm their identity with dental records?
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You are assuming that all people are identified that way. That particular way of identification will only be done if 1. there are teeth 2. there are dental record if there are no teeth then that method is not even thougt about or suggested. Where do they get the records... well that is from the next of kin or person that might know the victim. If there is no one or it is a jane doe then there is no dental identification tests done. Unfortunately there is no national data base that we can go to to get this information from. Alot of the great science can be haulted if there are no kin.
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I have another question to add to this, how is someone identified if their only records were when they were younger & later they had braces or something to change the alignment of their teeth. How can they tell its still the same person?
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