A Study on the Importance of Thumb Print in Human Identification

Introduction: Human identification by the use of finger prints is infallible, because the ridge arrangement on every finger of every human being is unique and does not alter with growth or age. The present study has been conducted with an aim to determine the most common thumb print pattern in both males and females and whether there is any relation between them. Methods: The study has been conducted in the Department of Anatomy, Gauhati Medical College, Guwahati, amongst a group of 145 1^st MBBS students (89 males and 56 females), having different ethnic backgrounds after approval of the Institutional Ethical Committee. Participants were briefed about the purpose of the study and written informed consent was also taken from them. The thumb print of the dominant hand was taken using printer’s blue ink and was transferred on to a white bond A4 paper. The prints thus recorded were studied with a magnifying lens and were classified on the basis of Michael Kucken’s classification system as Loop, Arch, Whorl and Composite pattern. Results: The present study revealed that there is no significant difference between male and female as far as the distribution of the different types of thumb print is concerned. Also, it is seen that the ‘loop’ and ‘whorl’ variety is much higher than the ‘arch’ and ‘composite’ variety of print which is more evident in case of males. Discussion: The finding of our study has the similarity with the observations made by other researchers in this field. Conclusion: Such a study may be useful in establishing a database which may be useful in various medicolegal cases to identify an individual.