Evaluation of the Degree of Agreement in Identifying Lip Prints and Palatal Rugae by three Independent Observers and Valuation of there Dependability in Sex Determination

Background : Establishing a person's identity is a very important process in civil and criminal cases. Dental, fingerprint and DNA comparisons are probably the most common techniques allowing fast and secure identification processes. However, in certain circumstances related to the scene of the crime or due to lack of experienced personnel, these techniques might be unavailable, so there is still an increasing need for reliable alternative methods of establishing identity. Objective : The objective of the study was to check for any peculiar lip patterns and rugae patterns in relation to the sex of the individual and to analyze the degree of agreement between three observers. Materials and Method: This study was conducted on 378 subjects, which included 189 males and 189 females, in the age group of 18-30 years. Lip prints and rugae pattern were analysed by three independent observers. Results : Lip print of branched type was most commonly seen in females and cross-section in males. Wavy pattern was most common in males and females in palatal rugae. Conclusion: This study shows that lip prints and palatal rugae are unique to an individual and behold the potential for recognition of the sex of an individual.