title: Sexual dimorphism in digital dermatoglyphic traits among Sinhalese people in Sri Lanka.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The purpose of this study was to evaluate gender-wise diversity of digital dermatoglyphic traits in a sample of Sinhalese people in Sri Lanka.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Four thousand and thirty-four digital prints of 434 Sinhalese individuals (217 males and 217 females) were examined for their digital dermatoglyphic pattern distribution. The mean age for the entire group was 23.66 years (standard deviation = 4.93 years). The loop pattern is observed more frequently (n = 2,592, 59.72%) compared to whorl (n = 1,542, 35.53%) and arch (n = 206, 4.75%) in the Sinhalese population. Females (n = 1,274, 58.71%) have a more ulnar loop pattern than males (n = 1,231, 56.73%). The plain whorl pattern is observed more frequently in males (n = 560, 25.81%) compared to females (n = 514, 23.69%).The double loop pattern is observed more frequently on the right and left thumb (digit 1) of both males and females. Pattern intensity index, Dankmeijer index and Furuhata index are higher in males.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Ulnar loop is the most frequently occurring digital dermatoglyphic pattern among the Sinhalese. All pattern indices are higher in males. To some extent, dermatoglyphic patterns of Sinhalese are similar to North Indians and other Caucasoid populations. Further studies with larger sample sizes are recommended to confirm our findings.
authors.affiliation: Department of Forensic Medicine, Faculty of Medicine and Allied sciences, Rajarata University of Sri Lanka, Saliyapura, Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka. buddhikatbw@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Buddhika T B
authors.initials: BT
authors.lastname: Wijerathne
authors.forename: Geetha K
authors.initials: GK
authors.lastname: Rathnayake
authors.forename: Shamila C
authors.initials: SC
authors.lastname: Adikari
authors.forename: Subashini
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Amarasinghe
authors.forename: Prasanna L
authors.initials: PL
authors.lastname: Abhayarathna
authors.forename: Ajith S
authors.initials: AS
authors.lastname: Jayasena
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000885:Anthropology, Physical; D003878:Dermatoglyphics; D005006:Ethnicity / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005260:Female; D006225:Hand / Q000033:anatomy & histology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D012727:Sex Characteristics; D013188:Sri Lanka / Q000453:epidemiology; D055815:Young Adult