ABSTRACT
The definition excludes other nonpatterned injuries made by teeth contacting skin such as might be encountered by a fist to the mouth. It also excludes the closing action of jaws during intended biting if a recognizable pattern is not produced. These other tooth-to-skin interactions are still important even if not distinguished by the term ‘‘bitemark’’ because they can be responsible for infection, tissue destruction, or transmissible diseases, and can transfer DNA in saliva. However, by convention, the term ‘‘bitemark’’ signifies to the forensic odontologist an injury that, by its pattern, helps establish its origin from teeth.
