COMPARISON OF 2 METHODS FOR MICROSCOPIC DETERMINATION OF AGE AT DEATH

The precision and accuracy of the Kerley and Ahlqvist-Damsten microscopic methods of age determination are compared. Both methods were applied to the same sample of 40 femoral thin sections of documented age at death. The results indicate that: both methods can be used with equal precision, as suggested by comparable observer errors; and the Kerley method produces overall more accurate age estimates. The low previously published standard error of the Ahlqvist-Damsten method (6.71 yr) apparently results from the uneven age distribution and small size (20) of their sample.