NamUs

Forensic Odontology
What is Forensic Odontology?

Forensic odontology is the application of dental evidence to

determine personal identification. An increasingly evolving science, 

dental evidence can sometimes be the sole identifier when remains 

have been burned, are skeletonized, or are otherwise unidentifiable 

by fingerprints or DNA.

Teeth are strong enough to defy decomposition in even the most 

extreme circumstances, and each person has a unique dental

pattern, defined through a combination of genetics, life events,

and any dental work performed during their lifetimes.

Law enforcement, medical examiners, and coroners often rely on 

dental records to establish legal, verifiable identifications of

missing and unidentified persons. Dental records provide an 

opportunity to make rapid, cost-effective, definitive comparisons 

between individuals for inclusions or exclusions of potential

matches. The use of forensic odontology can provide the critical 

key to identification.
1,500+

Missing and 

unidentified person 

cases in NamUs have 

been resolved using 

dental records.

Through a collaboration 

with the National Personnel 

Records Center, NamUs also 

assists with the acquisition of 

dental records for current and 

former military servicemen 

and servicewomen. 
NamUs Forensic Odontology Unit

NamUs resources and services are force multipliers that assist law 

enforcement agencies and medical examiner/coroner offices in the 

resolution of missing and unidentified persons cases.

NamUs forensic odontologists provide their decades of expertise 

at no cost to law enforcement or medicolegal offices. Agencies 

can upload dental information for missing and unidentified person 

cases directly to the NamUs database, which is a secure, central 

repository for case information. All dental information uploaded

to NamUs is available for 24/7 professional comparisons.

NamUs forensic odontologists also:

Digitally scan, code, and upload dental information to NamUs 

cases on behalf of the investigating agencies. 

• 

Complete dental worksheets that allow agencies to upload

accurate and complete dental information to the National 

Crime Information Center (NCIC).

• 

Assist with the acquisition of dental records, including records 

for past and present military personnel.

• 
Questions?

Contact the NamUs Forensic Odontology Unit

Toll-Free at 855-626-7600 

Email at NamUs@unthsc.edu

*For the security of sensitive information, please do not include any medical/dental records, personally 

identifiable information (ex. SSN or DOB), or other criminal justice sensitive information in an 

unencrypted email.

Submitting Dental Records to NamUs

For the most accurate and complete dental information to be uploaded to NamUs, dental radiographs and written treatment records 

should be submitted.

Upon request, NamUs provides pre-paid shipping labels to submit 

dental information for processing, and all records will be returned to 

the submitting agency after upload.

DENTAL RECORDS SHOULD BE SHIPPED TO:

NamUs Odontology Unit

UNT Center for Human Identification

3500 Camp Bowie Boulevard

Fort Worth, TX 76107

High-resolution images can also be transmitted to NamUs Forensic 

Odontologists using a secure file transfer link that can be requested 

via email at Rachel.Gonzalez@unthsc.edu.
Puerto Rico

VT

MD

CT

NJ

MA

NH

Virgin Islands

Northern

Mariana Islands

NamUs Odontology Contacts

For more information, or a case consultation, please contact the 

NamUs Forensic Odontologist for your state.

East/West Regions

Rich Scanlon

Rich.Scanlon@unthsc.edu • 817-487-9645

Central Region

John Filippi

John.Filippi@unthsc.edu • 817-666-5424
21-018_CHI RD

The NamUs program is funded through the 

National Institute of Justice, Office of Justice 

Programs, U.S. Department of Justice Award No. 

2016-MU-BX-K007. The opinions, findings, and 

conclusions or recommendations expressed in 

this publication are those of the author(s) and do 

not necessarily reflect those of the Department 

of Justice.

CENTER FOR HUMAN IDENTIFICATION

About NamUs

The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System 

(NamUs) is a program of the National Institute of Justice, 

managed through a cooperative agreement with the UNT 

Health Science Center (UNTHSC). Operated within the UNT 

Center for Human Identification at UNTHSC, NamUs brings 

people, information, forensic science and technology together 

to resolve missing, unidentified, and unclaimed person cases 

throughout the United States. For more information, visit 

www.NamUs.gov.