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Traditionally, ossification of the medial clavicular epiphysis (MCE) is assessed by visual staging, but norm variants frequently limit classic systems and introduce error and irreproducibility. High-resolution computed tomography (CT) allows for quantitative morphometric assessment, potentially offering support \u2013 especially in such cases. Based on the approach of Hua et al. (2014) an open-source workflow for metric age estimation of the medial clavicles using semi-automatic three-dimensional (3D) CT segmentation was developed. Clinical CT scans were pseudonymized, archived in XNAT (Extensible Neuroimaging Archive Toolkit), and 3D models were generated in 3D Slicer. Expert-guided segmentation and alignment enabled extraction of quantitative parameters including planar areas and volumes of epiphyses and metaphyses; area and volume ratios were calculated as dimensionless metrics. It was concluded that morphometric assessment of the medial clavicles via 3D imaging is a promising approach for forensic age estimation. The workflow\u2019s open-source architecture supports transparency and collaborative validation. Future research should validate metric markers and pursue workflow automation, particularly to address anatomically complex cases.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.1007\/s00414-025-03614-y","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,9,27]],"date-time":"2025-09-27T01:11:41Z","timestamp":1758935501000},"page":"399-405","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1007\/springer_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Development of an open-source 3D imaging method for forensic age estimation based on medial clavicular ossification: assessing area and volume ratios of epiphyses and metaphyses"],"prefix":"10.1007","volume":"140","author":[{"given":"Jonathan","family":"Kurz","sequence":"first","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-5734-9524","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Tobias","family":"Kr\u00e4hling","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Ronald","family":"Schulz","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-0512-741X","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Christian","family":"Ottow","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0007-7541-3116","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Volker","family":"Vieth","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-0135-1617","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Andreas","family":"Schmeling","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0000-0557-321X","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Aaron","family":"Liebsch","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"297","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,9,27]]},"reference":[{"issue":"4","key":"3614_CR1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"44","DOI":"10.3238\/arztebl.2016.0044","volume":"113","author":"A Schmeling","year":"2016","unstructured":"Schmeling A, Dettmeyer R, Rudolf E, Vieth V, Geserick G (2016) Forensic age estimation: methods, certainty, and the law. 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