A sample of 422 dental panoramic radiographs from individuals of known age (from 4 to 14 yrs), sex (males: 217, females: 205), and ethnicity (Saudi) was collected. A dental maturation score for each individual was calculated using the Demirjian method. Age was then estimated using the original Demirjian curves and tables based on French-Canadian population and population-specific curves and tables for Arab (Saudi and Kuwaiti) and European (Belgian) populations. The differences between dental age and chronological age were analyzed and compared using paired t-tests, one-way ANOVA test, and a post hoc Scheffé’s test. The Demirjian method utilizing French-Canadian standards presented significant difference between dental age and chronological age for the total sample and in the vast majority of age groups in both sexes. The mean overestimation of age was about 10 months ( ). The tables designed specifically for Arab populations had a significantly lower error than the tables designed for French-Canadian and Belgian populations. The latter had the largest error in age predication. New age prediction models and maturation scores for Saudi population were developed based on the Demirjian method using multinomial functions. 1. Introduction Several forms of biological age, such as skeletal, morphological, and dental, assess the physiological maturity of a child [1]. Dental age (DA) is an important factor to consider when treating malocclusion or inappropriate growth of the face [1–3]. DA as a means for determining chronological age is valuable in cases of adopted children, children who have committed legal offences, or in forensic cases. A scoring system, such as the Demirjian method, scores the different stages of tooth development resulting in a dental maturity score [4]. Systems based on the eruption of teeth are inaccurate methods of determining dental age because eruption is heavily influenced by environmental factors [3]. Tooth development is less affected by dental arch space, extraction of deciduous teeth, or tipping or impaction of teeth, which may influence the eruption process [3]. Reliable events in dental development, such as tooth calcification, allow for improved prediction of dental maturity [2]. The Demirjian method is highly accurate when evaluating young children (<6.5), less so with older children [5]. In a study [6] that compared dental age to chronological age in Somali children to that of matched white Caucasian children in England, the mean difference found between dental age and chronological age was 1.01 years for Somali boys, 0.19 for
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