Sex determination by using maximum length of femur bone: A study of 100 cases

Present study was conducted by selecting 100 normal South Indian adult femora from the skeletal collection of the Anatomy department, S.R.M. Medical College & Research Institute, S.R.M. Nagar, Potheri, Tamil Nadu, India. For the present study the maximum length means the maximum vertical distance between upper end of head of the femur and the lowest point of the femoral condyle. All measurements were done using osteometric board and values were expressed in millimeters. The maximum length of right male femur varied from 394mm to 506mm and in case of the left femur the maximum length varied from 396mm to 505mm. However, in cases of females the maximum length of right femur may vary from 375mm to 474mm and the left femur from 380mm to 470mm. The difference in femoral length in male and female was highly statistically significant with P<0.001 on both side. However, no statistical difference was found between the right and left side for the mean values computed for both genders (P > 0.05).