The impact of age on sex bias in models for height and sex estimation based on hand and foot dimensions

There are sex differences in age-related bone modifications after puberty. Androgens stimulate radial bone expansion in males, while estrogen stimulates endosteal apposition but limits periosteal expansion in females. The potential effect of age on observed sex biases in height and sex estimation models is most significantly relevant for forensic or bioarchaeological research that relies, at least in part, on hand and foot bone measurements of living or skeletal remains for purposes of identification or demographic reconstruction. This study sought to determine whether age affects sex biases in models for height and sex estimation which are based on hand and foot dimensions. The study was cross-sectional between January and June 2021 at the University for Development Studies. The study included 379 participants (male = 161 and female = 218) between 20 and 29 years. The hand length (HL), hand width (HW), foot length (FL) and foot width (FW) were measured twice from the left side using computer-assisted analysis. Univariable and multivariable discriminant and linear regression models were formulated for sex and height estimation respectively. Females were better classified than males with sex biases (male-female) ranging from − 1.3% to − 22.6% for all models. Models for height estimation were more precise in males (bias: 0.0–0.3 cm) than in females (bias: 0.3–1.4 cm). However, age did not have an impact on the observed sex biases. Height and sex estimation from foot and height dimensions may not need adjustment for age. This may, however, be limited to a given population and age group.