Dermatoglyphics

Abstract

Dermatoglyphics cannot be considered as central in the study of congenital malformations of man. Nevertheless, they have the potential for an intriguing and informative peripheral impact that seems to be unappreciated in the rush to amass information about ridge configurations without any real awareness of the underlying developmental processes. Some attention to the details of ridge configuration seems justifiable in view of the potential value of dermatoglyphic analysis in diagnosing syndromes of prenatal origin (of which the classic example is Down syndrome) or in screening for conditions of postnatal onset (as in the case of leukemia). However, although it can be argued that dermatoglyphic studies should be a part of the routine physical examination of any child with congenital malformations, such studies have no more diagnostic discriminating power than have other features, both morphologic and nonmorphologic (eg maternal age, family history, pregnancy history). Actually, chromosome analysis has become the definitive test in many instances. In the case of screening, none of the dermatoglyphic features found in studies of childhood leukemia is specific enough to be of any predictive value. In my opinion, undue attention to the issues of diagnosis and screening has detracted from proper consideration of two intriguing problems: the relation of the ridges to the volar pads, which has been known for over 80 years but never widely appreciated, and the development and subsequent regression of the pads themselves in the context of general limb morphogenesis. Our current ambivalent attitude to the study of human embryology is only part of the reason for this negligence. As long as it persists, the contribution dermatoglyphics can make to human developmental biology will not be realized.