Abstract

PHOTOGRAMMETRIC AURICULAR ANALYSIS IN A NIGERIAN POPULATION

Onyinye Mary Ozioko, Uche Sebastine Ozioko*, Augustine Ogugua Egwu, Ifeanyi Anthony Egwuatu, Malachy Ameh

Abstract

Introduction: Ear morphology is highly complex and varies from individual to individual, between ethnic groups and race. This study was aimed at photoanalytically determining auricular parameters, to assess sexual dimorphism and bilateral asymmetry in pinna of Yorubas. Method: 200 subjects (10-30 years) comprising 100 males and 100 females were selected using simple random sampling technique. Total Ear Length (TEL), Total Ear Width (TEW), Total Lobe Width (TLW), Total Lobular Height (TLH), Tragus-Anti Helix (TAH), Tragus-Anti Tragus (TAT) was measured, analyzed and sexual dimorphism of the measured parameters was investigated. Results: indicated significant difference in the different morphometric parameters of ears in relation to sex (P<0.05), males were observed to have higher TEL, TEW, TLH ear parameters than females, Females were also observed to have a longer TLW than males for both sides of the ear, males were observed to have longer Tragus-Anti Helix (TAH) than females (P<0.05) in the right and left ear. Bilateral asymmetry was also observed in mean TAH values which was consistently higher on the right side than the left side of both males and females. Tragus-Anti Tragus (TAT) was observed to have higher mean values in females than males in the right and left ears. Conclusion: Findings from this study indicates that ear parameters exhibit sexual dimorphism, bilateral asymmetry and correlates with anthropometric variables such as age, height and weight hence can be used as predictors to form regression formula for predictions to aid biological profiling, facial recognition from security cameras, planning of cosmetic surgery.

Keywords: Auricle, Photogammetry, Yorubas.