Dermatoglyphics and Essential Hypertension

Essential hypertension falls in the category of hypertension that has no identifiable cause and affects 90-95% of hypertensive patients. Several studies have utilize dermatoglyphics as models for preliminary diagnosing diseases with genetic and non-genetic origins. However, little studies have been conducted to determine the relationship between dermatoglyphics and essential hypertension. The aim of the study was to generate detailed baseline data on the relationship between dermatoglyphic patterns and essential hypertensive to serve as a preliminary non-invasive diagnostic tool. A total of 400 participants out of which 200 were clinically diagnosed essential hypertensive patients from the Hypertensive Unit of Mampong Government Hospital (Ghana) and 200 clinically confirmed normotensive individuals were recruited for the present study. The fingerprints and palm prints of the participants were taken using a CanonScan Lide 120 colour image scanner which was connected to a Hp laptop. For the distribution of the sub-types of fingerprint patterns, ulnar loop dominated in both groups with the control group recording the highest. Statistically, there was no significant difference between the two groups. Significant difference was recorded between the two groups for the palmar ATD angle for both palms with the control group recording the highest. For the PIC patterns, PIC 300 and 310 dominated in both groups. Statistically, there was no significant difference between the two groups. The results of the present study have shown that, there is some relationship between dermatoglyphics and essential hypertension. This will serve as a preliminary diagnostic tool for the earlier diagnosis of the disease. KEY WORDS: Dermatoglyphics, Essential Hypertension, ATD angle, PIC pattern.