Dermatoglyphic Characteristics in Adults with Primary Hypertension in Southwestern Nigeria.

Dermatoglyphics is genetically determined and the traits remain unchanged until decomposition after death. These traits reflect prenatal developmental stability. Dermatoglyphics details are studied from level 1 to level 3. Hypertension is a pathological condition influenced by genetics and environmental factors. The aim of this study is to investigate the use of dermatoglyphics as noninvasive screening tool to determine predisposition to hypertension. The participants were 384 (192 normotensive and 192 hypertensive), from University College Hospital Ibadan. Fingerprints were obtained using fingerprint scanner Dermalog LF10, Hamburg, Germany. GraphPad Prism 8.4.3 was used for T-test and ANOVA for association between the variables. Level 1 details did not reveal significant difference between hypertensive and normotensive. Level 2 details (minutiae) revealed significant difference (p<0.05) between hypertensives and normotensives. The level 2 details of dermatoglyphics may be a screening tool for predisposition to hypertension.