title: Dermatoglyphic and palmar-crease alterations as indicators of early intra-uterine insult in mental retardation.
abstract: A comparative study of unusual dermatoglyphic and palmar patterns revealed significant differences between the frequencies of certain patterns among 200 congenitally affected mentally retarded children and 500 normal controls. A scoring method demonstrating the significance of eight unusual patterns as non-specific indicators of early intra-uterine fetal insult was devised. 10 per cent of the children previously classified as idiopathically mentally retarded were shown to have been exposed to early intra-uterine insult. Dermatoglyphic and palmar-crease analysis should be included as a routine investigation for children with mental retardation of unknown cause.
mesh_terms: D000015:Abnormalities, Multiple / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000235:genetics; D002648:Child; D003878:Dermatoglyphics; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008607:Intellectual Disability / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000235:genetics*; D008297:Male