Plantar dermatoglyphic traits of sub-Saharan African subjects

Abstract

Introduction: Dermatoglyphic traits are important reliable tools for establishing and confirming population relationship, however not much has been documented in sub-Saharan Africa. Materials and methods: The sole was mapped into 10 topographical /ones based on Cummins and Midlo nomenclature and these were used to characterize the study. Bilateral plantar and digital prints of the soles were obtained by the inking procedure of Cummins and Midlo and the patterns of arches, loops and whorls were classified and counted using standard methods. Dankmeijer’s(Dl) and pattern intensity (PII) indices were determined and the frequencies of the ridge patterns compared in all subjects. Results: In Nigerians, loop patterns were present in the proximal and distal plantar soles while whorls were limited to the distal zones I - V, but more prominent in zone I but least in zone V. the loop and whorl patterns were significantly higher in males than in females (p<0.05). In Kenyans and Tanzanians, loops and arches were present in the soles but loops occurred more than arches as was the case in Malawians and Zimbabweans. Whorls were however, restricted to the distal sole of zones I-V in men but only present in zones III & I in Tanzanian women. Whorls were only present in zones I-V with zone I having the highest occurrence in Malawians and Zimbabweans. Quantitative variables of DI and PI I did not show any significant differences within the groups studied. Conclusion: The study has shown that digital patterns arc better indices for differentiation of population groups.