Dermatoglyphics - An Assessment Tool In Preventive Medicine

(Photography By Caason Tan)

Dermatoglyphics refers to the branch of science in the study of the patterns of skin ridges (dermal ridges) present on the fingers, palm, toes and the soles of human. Importance of finger print in modern world is not restricted to the field of forensic and criminal application only. Because of unveiling various unknown aspects of dermatoglyphics, the subject is developing its importance in every-day life. Now-a- days in biology, anthropology, genetics and medicine, dermatoglyphics serves as a tool to describe, compare and contrast, and at times predict occurrences and risks for biomedical events studied by these major disciplinary areas. Fingerprints are an easily accessible, lifelong marker referable to early gestation. This is one of the best and most widely used method for personal identification.Considerable progress has been made in the understanding of the associations between dermatoglyphics and various medical disorders, as a result of which dermatoglyphic analysis has been established as a useful diagnostic and research tool in medicine, providing important insights into the inheritance and embryologic development of many studied clinical disorders. Congenital anomalies like trisomy 21 and 46 XY female can have multiple effects on the phenotype, including the pattern of dermatoglyphics. Study showed that dermatoglyphics may be an important feature in psychiatric illness. Schizophrenia cases showed reductions in palmar a-b ridge counts, whereas radial loops were increased in bipolar mood disorder. Pulliam et al proposed digital arch as a marker of the chronic intestinal pseudoobstruction. Polovina et al found definite reflection in inderdigital area III and IV in cases of brachial plexus palsy. The dermatoglyphic patterns may be utilized effectively to study the genetic basis of breast cancer and may also serve as a screening tool in the high-risk population. Recent studies observed dermatoglyphics as diagnostic clue to various clinical conditions like acute lymphoblastic leukemia, occupational allergic bronchitis, locomotor disorder, coeliac disease, beta-thalassemia and many others. ( By Dr.Mollik ,Dr.Habib )