1. THE JOURNAL OF PREVENTIVE MEDICINE
2003; 11 (1): 11-17
PATHOLOGY OF DERMATOGLYPHICS IN INFANTILE AUTISM
Ana Ţarcă1, C. Barabolski2
1. Department of Anthropology - Iaşi Branch of the Romanian Academy
2. ,,Socola” University Clinical Hospital of Iaşi
Abstract. The authors present the results of a study on digitopalmary dermatoglyphies of
patients diagnosed with infantile autism. 137 subjects (67 boys and 70 girls) with 274 finger
and palmar prints, residents in country’s eastern territory have been investigated. The
dermatoglyphic digito-palmary picture revealed a broad range of anomalies or distortions
(associated with severe clinical features) both as the frequency of some of the digital or
palmary characteristics and their distribution by sex, laterality and fingers, which differentiate
significantly these people from the normal population. Occurring both in boys and girls, on
both hands but with priority on the left ones, these distortions contribute to a more complete
knowledge of the dermatoglyphic nomogram on the basis of which infantile autism could be
diagnosed early. The present study is the first one – at national level – devoted to such
aspects.
Key words: dermatoglyphics, infantile autism, anomalies or distortions
Rezumat. Lucrarea cuprinde un studiu al dermatoglifelor digito-palmare prezente la pacienţi
cu autism infantil (67 băieţi şi 70 fete) de vârste cuprinse între 2,5 şi 18 ani, de la care s-au
recoltat 274 amprente. Se constată că, tabloul dermatoglific digito-palmar al pacienţilor cu
autism infantil prezintă o gamă largă de anomalii sau distorsiuni (cu grave implicaţii clinice),
atât sub aspectul frecvenţei unora dintre caracteristicile digitale sau palmare cât şi al
distribuţiei lor în funcţie de sex, lateralitate şi degete, prin care afectaţii se diferenţiază
semnificativ de populaţia normală din care provin. Prezente atât la băieţi cât şi la fete şi pe
ambele mâini ale afectaţilor dar cu precădere pe cea stângă, distorsiunile evidenţiate sunt o
contribuţie la cunoaşterea nomogramei dermatoglifice de diagnoză a autismului infantil, având
în vedere că studiul de faţă este primul de acest gen la nivel naţional.
Cuvinte cheie: dermatoglife, autism infantil, anomalii sau distorsiuni
INTRODUCTION own hermetic world dominated by
Known also as the ,,Kanner’s unreal images, obsessions and feelings
Syndrome”- the name of its discoverer and pronominal reversal, rituals and
(1943), the infantile autism is defined compulsive phenomena (1-4).
nowadays as a syndrome characterized Once lacking its communicative
by a large spectrum of neuropsychic function, the child’s language becomes
disorders, manifested by: delayed speaking, a soliloquic, talking to himself
incapacity of verbal communication, stereotypically, producing meaningless
inability of establishing and developing sounds and expressions, repeating ad
contacts with the other (close persons literam and evoking ceaselessly past
being included), the shrink into one’s
11

2. Ana Ţarcă, C. Barabolski
events, related to nothing, a state chromosome syndrome and with
named ,,echolalia”. Tuberous sclerosis (2,6).
The syndrome, which is usually Taking into consideration the multiple
installed around the age of 30 months, forms of the manifestations characterizing
rarely earlier or later, is in quite the disease, credit has come to be
various forms, from mild - more or given to the idea that each autistic
less similar to a normal child - to very child’s is an unique case, capable of
severe ones (1,2,4,5). The first providing a multitude of symptoms for
category includes the Asperger each psychic function, taken separately
Syndrome (2-4), assuming solely the (1,2,7).
presence of some autistic elements, As to the etiology of autism, several
such as: anxiety, reduced socialization, hypotheses - including multiple causes
utilization of the language exclusively of the disease - have been advanced
for personal benefits, child’s intellect (1,4,7,8). The most widely accepted
being not affected at all, and the Ret today one supports the organic nature
Syndrome (1,2), affecting almost of autism, and assumes certain
exclusively little girls. It is structural and functional anomalies at
characterized, apart from some bony the level of the cerebral hemispheres -
distrophies, sight disorders, height and especially in the parietal zone
weight hypotrophy, or cortical (responsible for hearing, speaking and
anthropies, by certain autistic language) in the temporal zone
manifestations, such as: slow diction, (known as regulating the formation of
absence of social communication, social and emotional habits), as well as
repeated stereotype movements. The at the level of the Calous Body,
severe forms of infantile autism are through which the nervous impulses
associated - in most cases - with are transmitted from one cerebral
severe or moderate mental retardation, hemisphere to another. Actually, by
with epilepsy, dislexy, alalia, hearing magnetic nuclear resonance (MRI) at
less, enuresis or double incontinence, brain level (1) a low nervous activity
sometimes with the Fragil - X in the above mentioned regions have
chromosome syndrome or Martin Bell’s been detected. Such anomalies present
disease, or with a very rare genetic at the level of autistic brain may be
disease - namely, tuberous sclerosis. inherited (especially in the case of
Consequently, it is appreciated family forms of autism), or they may
nowadays that about 75% of autistic appear either during prenatal
persons evidence mental retardation, development (more exactly, in the first
of which 15%-20% with very severe three months of embrionary life, when
forms (IQ - below 34); almost 1 of 3 epidermal papillary ridges are also
persons are stricken by epileptic forming), being provoked by viral or
crises, while, for about 10% of them bacterian infections, metabolic
(boys, especially) the disease is disorders etc., or in perinatal periods.
associated with the Fragil - X
12

3. PATHOLOGY OF DERMATOGLYPHICS IN INFANTILE AUTISM
As to autism’s substrate and genetic anxiety, dislexy, double incontinency.
mechanism research is in progress In the most of cases (52.55%) the
(2,4,5,9), sustained efforts being made disease was accompanied by moderate
by specialists for discovering the mental deficiency, alalie, enuresis,
genes responsible for the disease, in hypoacusy. Some patients had
view of a possible, future elimination epilepsy (10.95%). Over 75% of
from the genetic code. Until then, people have been considered with
however, it is absolutely necessary to disability of first degree, which
establish some methods and assumes an advanced stage of
techniques for an early identification neuropsychic and physiological
of children in danger of autism, so that degeneration, suggestively illustrated -
an adequate therapy should be applied as we shall see in the following - by
prior to the manifestation of any the broad pathological charge of their
symptoms. As the dermatoglyphic dermatoglyphic picture, too.
studies, performed on patients suffering For all indicators of dermatoglyphic
from Down syndrome, congenital pathology put into evidence, sexual
deafness, or with heart congenital dimorphism and bilateral differences
malformations, severe ophtalmologic had been also considered, the results
disorders or epilepsy (9-13) put into being compared with those of controls
evidence the importance of (normal population) from the same
dermatoglyphic indicators for an early region (a group of 200 subjects: 100
diagnosis, their application had been men and 100 women).
considered as beneficial also in The working methods have been those
infantile autism. currently employed in studies of
Consequently, a dermatoglyphic study pathologic dermatoglyphy (9,11,14).
on a group of autistic patients,
residents in eastern territory, has been RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
developed. The analysis and statistic processing
of the dermatoglyphic data of the
MATERIAL AND METHODS patients with infantile autism have
137 patients with infantile autism (67 shown that both their finger and
boys and 70 girls) aged between 2.5 palmary picture show an ample and
and 18 years, all residents in eastern strong pathological charge,
territory of Romania, have been suggestively illustrated by a multitude
investigated in the Mental Health of distortions with deep clinical
Laboratory of Iassy. significance, being an expression of
The medical records of the patients - their advanced degree of neuropsychic
whose disease began to manifest and physiological degeneration.
around the age of 2 years - showed At the level of the whole sample, such
that, in 36.50% of the cases, autism anomalies are deviations in the
was associated with a severe mental frequency of some of the finger or
deficiency (IQ below 34), with palmar dermatoglyphic characteristics
13

4. Ana Ţarcă, C. Barabolski
from the values of normal population on the right hand of both sexes having
from which the subjects come, and its major incidence on fingers IV and V.
also upsetting from their classical • Palmary dermatoglyphic
distribution line, as a function of sex, distortions
laterality or fingers. A large part of A broad range of distortions, quite
such distortions had been reported severe as to their pathological
also, for other European groups of significance (9,11,12,13); has been
autistic patients (6,8,10), as well as in provided by palmary picture. The first
other severe genetic disorders one, refers to the modification of the
(7,9,10,12) - in different ratios – fact classical sequence of the true
which explains their large clinical patterns’ frequency in palm’s five
implications. compartments, that is IV > Hp > III >
• Digital dermatoglyphic distortions Th/I > II instead of IV > III > Hp >
Patients with infantile autism show a Th/I > II which is the normal case.
significantly higher frequency for Such a situation is induced by the
arches (A) and a lower one for loops substantial reduction of pattern’s
(L) on all fingers, comparatively with percentages in the interdigital space
the control group (table 1). If, for the III, up to 24.09%, comparatively with
normal population, the two main 36.09% - recorded on the control
patterns are predominant at girls and group, the difference being
on the left hand, in these patients they statistically significant (p < 0.02). This
were more frequently at boys and on anomaly, associated with the other
the right hand (the last one, for loops, two, equally important as to their
exclusively). malformative effects, consists in the
The arches, usually present on the increase (over two fold) of partial and
second and third finger, and very total supression of C line (Cx and
rarely represented on the others, Co, respectively) compared with the
records quite high percentages on the controls. Cx was more frequent in
fourth and fifth finger, and especially boys, while Co in girls; both prevailed
on the first finger of the left hand on left palms, the tendencies being
(15.7% for girls and 10.45% for boys); similar to those of the control group
many of them had here a radial instead (table 1).
of an ulnar orientation - a peculiarity Significantly higher frequencies have
considered as a strong ,,malformative been found also for: the presence of
stigmate” for carriers (9,11). the loop with ulnar orientation (LU)
A last dermatoglyphic anomaly at the and of 2, 3 or 4 triradia in the same
digital level refers to the significant palm (tt’, tt’t’’, etc); the absence of
increase of raketoid loops ratio, the axial triradius t in the palm (tΟ)
through which the patients of the both and finishing of line T’s course in
sexes are considerably differential from fields 11 and 12 instead of 13 (all of
the control group (p < 0.01); it is a them at the level of palm’s
distortion more frequent in girls and Hypothenary); for the arrangement
14

5. PATHOLOGY OF DERMATOGLYPHICS IN INFANTILE AUTISM
of the papillary ridges as a dense and or the Simian Line. The differences
very dense network in the Thenar/I; between the two groups concerning
for reducing the distance between the mentioned distortions are
triradia a and b, limiting the supported statistically by a p value of
interdigital space II, much lower than < 0.05, especially when considering
the normal average value of 21 mm - the male and female series, on whole
for women and, of 24 mm - for men, (table 1).
and for the transverse palmary sulcus
Table 1. Frequencies of digital and palmary distortions in infantile autism group
comparatively with normal population
Digital and Infantile autism (137) Control (200) p value
palmary Boys Girls Boys + Boys Girls Boys + Boys Girls Boys +
distortions (%) Girls Girls Girls
A on all fingers 10.60 10.00 10.29 2.50 6. 20 4.35 < 0.03 NS 0.03
L>R L>R L>R L>R L>R L>R
L on all fingers 61.19 59.71 60.44 67.00 75.20 71.10 NS < 0.03 0.04
R>L R>L R>L L>R L>R L>R
Raketoid type 8.65 9.71 9.10 R - - - 0.01 0.01 < 0.01
loops R>L R>L >L
LU in Hp 11.95 7.86 9.85 3.90 2.63 3.26 0.05 NS < 0.02
L>R L>R L>R L>R L>R L>R
tt’, tt’t’’, etc. 27.62 36.42 32.11 15.80 17.92 16.86 NS < 0.01 0.01
R>L R>L R>L R>L R>L R>L
t0 2.24 7.14 4.75 - - - NS < 0.01 < 0.01
L>R L>R L>R
T11 and T12 32.09 28.57 30.30 2.80 3.51 3.15 < 0.01 < 0.01 < 0.01
instead of T13 L>R L>R L>R L>R L>R L>R
Dense and
very dense 29.85 58.57 44.52 10.90 16.91 13.95 0.01 < 0.01 < 0.01
network in Th/I L=R L>R L>R L>R L>R L>R
a-b < than 24 mm 58.39 62.04 60.22 9.80 7.20 8.50 L
in M R>L R>L R>L L>R L>R >R < 0.01 <0.01 < 0.01
21 mm in F
Cx 36.56 30.30 33.21 16.90 14.50 15.70 0.01 0.02 0.01
L>R L>R L>R L>R L>R L>R
Co 5.22 10.00 7.66 2.10 3.20 2.60 NS 0.05 0.05
L>R L>R L>R L>R L>R L>R
Transverse 11.94 6.43 9.12 4.10 2.30 3.20 0.05 NS 0.03
palmary Sulcus L=R L>R L>R L>R L>R L>R
Table 1 data show that, out of the 9 network from Th/I, Co and the much
palmary distortions occurring in more reduced a-b distance are
infantile autism, LU from Hp, T11 and present to girls - a dimorphic tendency
T12, Cx and the palmar Sulcus are which, apart from some insignificant
more frequent to boys, while tt’t’’, exceptions, was present in the control
etc, t0, the dense and very dense group, as well.
15

6. Ana Ţarcă, C. Barabolski
Of the two hands, most of the palmary maintain the tendencies occurring
anomalies of patients with autism were in the normal population.
more frequent on the left palm (with 4. These results could be of use for an
the exception of tt’t’’, etc., and of the early identification of infantile
much lower a-b distance), being autism in order to establish an
recognized as carriers of the majority adequate therapy.
of ,,malformative stigmata” in other
maladies, too (8,9,11,14). With the REFERENCES
only one exception (the reduced a-b 1. xxx: American Psychiatric Association
distance) these bimanual differences (APA): Diagnostic and Statistical
agree, with those of the control group, Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth
too (table 1). Edition, Washington D.C., 1994.
2. Meilă P, Milea Şt: Textbook of
pediatrics, Med. Publ. House Bucureşti,
CONCLUSIONS 1988, 6: 340-346 (in Romanian).
1. The dermatoglyphic investigations 3. Uta F: Autism and Asperger
performed on patients with infantile Syndrome. Cambridge Univ. Press,
autism, have put into evidence 1997, 37-183.
multiple modifications (either 4. xxx: World Health Organization
anomalies or distortions) with deep (WHO): International Classification
pathological significance, both in of Diseases, Chapt. V, Mental and
the digital and - especially - in the Behavioural Disorders. Geneva,
palmary picture (up to eight for 1990, 270-287.
each patient) being present - in 5. Bowman EP: Asperger’s Syndrome
and Autism. British Journal of
most cases - on carriers’ both
Psychiatry, 1983, 143: 261-265.
hands. 6. Langenbeck W, Varga I, Hausman I:
2. On the whole group, for all The Predictive Value of Dermato-
distortions put into the light, glyphics in the Diagnosis of FRA (X)-
significantly higher ratios have Positive Martin Bell Syndrome
been found comparatively with the (MBS), American Journal of Med.
control group suggesting that the Genet., 1988, 169-175.
causal factors involved in the 7. Wing L: Language, Social and
development of autistic manifestations Cognitive Impairments in Autism and
had been active during the first Severe Mental Retardation. Journal of
three or four months of intrauterine Autism and Development Disorders,
1981, 11: 31-44.
life, when the epidermal papillary
8. Sank D, Sank BD: Finger Prints and
ridges were finished up. Laterality Preferences of Early Onset
3. The digital anomalies are mostly Autism. Birth Defects, Original
accompanied by some significant Article Series, 1979, XV, 6: 678-695.
deviations from the classical line of 9. Schauman B, Alter M: Dermatoglyphics
the sexual dimorphism, of the in Medical Disorders. Springer Verlag,
bilateral differences, or distribution New-York-Heidelberg-Berlin, 1976, 253.
on fingers; the palmary ones
16

7. PATHOLOGY OF DERMATOGLYPHICS IN INFANTILE AUTISM
10. Ţarcă A: The population dermatogyiphics 13. Ţarcă A, Barabolski C: Contributions to
in three Romanian provinces. Thesis, the Dermatoglyphic Diagnosis of
Univ. of Iaşi 1995, 171-217 (in Epilepsy. Journal of Preventive
Romanian). Medicine, 2002, 10 (2): 28-35.
11. Ţarcă Ana: La valeur diagnostique 14. Loesch DZ: Dermatoglyphics Methods
des dermatoglyphes. Jurnal de in other Types of Malformations and
Medicină Preventivă, Iaşi, 1998, 6 (1): Diseases. Quantitative Dermatoglyphics,
11-24 (in Romanian). Oxford Univ. Press, 1983, 315-331.
12. Ţarcă A: Contribution a l’étude de la
pathologie des dermatoglyphes.
Anthropo, 2001 b, 51-60.
17