Sex Distinction in Digital Dermatoglyphic Patterns of Convicted Prisoners: A Comparative Cohort-Control Study

Abstract

The present study intends to analyse sex distinction in digital dermatoglyphic patterns in convicted prisoners and compare them with a normal control group. For this purpose, a sample of 184 prisoners (149 males, 35 females) as well as 240 normal participants (male 120, female 120)were selected. The prisoner cohort group selected for the study was convicted for the following offences: Section 302 IPC, 307 IPC, 376IPC, 363-364 IPC, 366 IPC, 323-26 IPC. Galton’s system of classification was followed to classify various dermatoglyphic patterns. In the male criminal cohort group, the overall frequency of loop patterns (56.51%) was maximum compared to the frequency of whorls (38.79%) and arches (4.7%), while males in the control group exhibited the highest frequency of whorls (48.25%) followed by loops (47.67%) and arches (4.08%). In females, loops were the most frequently occurring pattern, whereas arches were the least frequently seen pattern in both the criminal and cohort group. The frequency of arches was lowest in both the hands with higher fractional percentage in the radial side (thumb and index finger) of distoproximal axis as compared to ulnar side (ring finger and little finger) in both the groups. Pattern intensity index (13.40 vs 13.05), and furuhata’s index (69.35 vs 68.47) of the criminal males and females were found to be comparable, but the Dankmeijer’s index (12.11 vs 18.93) of the male criminals was lower than their female counterparts, thereby indicating a higher occurrence of arches in the female criminal cohort group.

Keywords

• forensic science
• cohort group
• dermatoglyphic patterns
• prisoners