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| Year : 2011 | Volume
: 22
| Issue : 5 | Page : 664-668 |
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| A comparison of lip prints between Aryans-Dravidians and Mongols |
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Prathibha Prasad1, Vanishree2
1 Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Pathology, College of Dentistry, Gulf Medical University, Ajman, United Arab Emirates
2 Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Pathology, Navodaya Dental College, Raichur, Karnataka, India
Click here for correspondence address and email
| Date of Submission | 28-Apr-2010 |
| Date of Decision | 24-Aug-2010 |
| Date of Acceptance | 27-Jul-2011 |
| Date of Web Publication | 7-Mar-2012 |
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 Abstract | | |
Context: Lip prints are very useful in forensic investigation and personal identification. Like finger prints, even lip prints can be instrumental in identifying a person positively.
Aims: Indians are closer to Mongoloids than to Caucasoids or Negroids as indicated by the phylogenetic tree. Most of the studies on lip prints are done in their own population. We have compared lip prints of Manipuris with other Indians (Aryans and Dravidians) who are both close to Mongoloid race and are genetically similar.
Materials and Methods: A total of 100 students 50 males and 50 females were selected of whom 30 males and 30 females were of Aryan and Dravidian features and 20 males and 20 females showed the Mongol features. Study materials used were Red colored lipstick, Lip brush, Cellophane tape, White chart paper and Magnifying lens. The lip prints were analyzed by dividing them into eight compartments.
Results: Analysis of lip prints showed that the most common and the least common pattern in both males and females (Aryans-Dravidians and Mongols) were the same, but the compartment wise distribution of the lip patterns was different.
Conclusion: In the present study, it is established that there is no similarity of lip prints from one individual to another individual and between males and females. Regarding the comparison with Mongols, more studies with a larger sample size is necessary. Keywords: Aryans, cheiloscopy, Dravidians, lip prints, Mongols
How to cite this article:
Prasad P, Vanishree. A comparison of lip prints between Aryans-Dravidians and Mongols. Indian J Dent Res 2011;22:664-8 |
How to cite this URL:
Prasad P, Vanishree. A comparison of lip prints between Aryans-Dravidians and Mongols. Indian J Dent Res [serial online] 2011 [cited 2023 Mar 30];22:664-8. Available from: https://www.ijdr.in/text.asp?2011/22/5/664/93453 |
The wrinkles and grooves present on the surface of the lip are anatomically designated as "Figura linearum labiorum rubrorum". [1] The imprint produced by these grooves is termed "lip print". The study of lip prints is referred to as "cheiloscopy" which can be used to identify individuals in criminology where they might have left lip print at the crime scene. [2] Experts can lift lip prints from objects found at crime scenes and compare these prints to a suspect's lip pattern. Lip prints can also support dental record comparisons in homicide cases where victims do not have teeth or readily available dental records. Indians are closer to Mongoloids than to Caucasoids or Negroids as indicated by the phylogenetic tree. [3] We studied lip prints in subjects showing Aryan and Dravidian features and subjects with Mongol features. We tried to see if there are any differences or similarities in the incidence of any particular pattern of lip print.
Brief history
Locard [4] was one of the France's greatest criminologist who first recommended the use of lip prints in personal identification and criminalization.
Dr. Santos [5] advocated the division of wrinkles and grooves on the lip into simple and compound types. They were subdivided into eight types for personal identification. He then devised his own classification of lip grooves, namely:
- Straight line
- Curved line
- An angled line and
- A sine shaped curve
Suzuki and Tsuchihashi [1],[6],[7] did an extensive study and concluded that lip prints are dissimilar among different individuals, no similarity exists between the twins and that there is no hereditary pattern of lip prints. It was them who designated a name to the grooves present on the lips as "Figura linearum labiorum rubrorum".
They have also recorded the use of lip prints in criminal investigations.
| Materials and Methods | |  |
The study sample comprised 100 students (50 males and 50 females) of Navodaya Education Trust, Raichur, aged between 17 and 21 years, out of whom 30 males and 30 females were of Aryan and Dravidian features and 20 males and 20 females showed the Mongol features [Figure 1] and [Figure 2].
Study materials
- Red colored lipstick
- Lip brush
- Cellophane tape
- White chart paper
- Magnifying lens (as shown in [Figure 3])
Recording method
Care was taken to select individuals having no lesions on the lips. Individuals with known hypersensitivity to lipsticks were not included in the study. A dark red colored lipstick was applied with a lip brush, evenly on both the lips. A lip impression was made on a strip of cellophane tape on the glued portion [Figure 4], which was then stuck to a white chart paper. This served as a permanent record [Figure 5]. The impression was subsequently visualized with the help of a magnifying lens. | Figure 5: Cellophane tape with the lip print stuck on white chart paper for permanent record
Click here to view |
In this study, we followed the classification of patterns of the lines on the lips proposed by Suzuki and Tsuchihashi: [1],[8]
- Type I: Clear-cut vertical grooves that run across the lips.
- Type II: Partial length groove of type I.
- Type III: Branched grooves (branching Y-shaped pattern).
- Type IV: Intersected grooves (criss-cross pattern).
- Type V: Reticular pattern.
- Type VI: Grooves that do not fall into any of the above categories and cannot be differentiated morphologically/undetermined.
The recording was done by noting the combinations of groove types found in each print. Because most lips contain more than one type of pattern, the lips were divided into eight compartments. A horizontal line divided the upper lip from the lower lip, and the upper and lower lips were divided through the center by an imaginary vertical line, thus producing left and right upper and lower quadrants. Each quadrant was then further divided into equal halves and numbered as shown below.
Each compartment is studied and the combination of groove patterns for each compartment was recorded.
| Results | | |
A total of 100 individuals were included in the study of whom 50 were males and 50 were females in the age group of 17-21 years. Among these 50 males and females, 30 belonged to Aryans-Dravidians and 20 belonged to Mongols. When all the patterns were evaluated, it was found that no two individuals had similar type of lip print pattern. It was found that intersecting pattern was the most common among Aryan-Dravidian and Mongol males and females. The least common was the reticular pattern in both Aryan-Dravidian and Mongol males. The least common pattern in both Aryan-Dravidian and Mongol females was the partial length groove.
The intersecting pattern in Aryan-Dravidian males was found to be the most common in compartments 2, 3, 4, 6, and 7 having 33.3%, 33.3%, 30%, 36.6 and 40%, respectively. Intersecting pattern was also common in Mongol males in the compartments 2, 3, 5, 6, 7 and 8 having 45%, 25%, 70%, 40%, 54%, and 60%, respectively. In all the compartments of the lower lip in Mongol males, the intersecting pattern was the most common. The least common pattern in Aryan-Dravidian males was reticular pattern found in compartments 1, 2, 4, 5, and 8 having 2.4%, 10%, 5.2%, 8.2% and 4%, respectively. The least common pattern in Mongol males was also reticular pattern found in compartments 1, 2, 4, and 8 which had 2%, 6%, 6%, and 0%, respectively.
Analysis of lip prints among females showed that intersected pattern was the most common in both Aryans-Dravidians and Mongols. But the least common was partial length groove. The intersecting pattern in females (Aryans-Dravidians) was found to be the most common in 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 8 having 39%, 64.5%, 41.8%, 39%, 45%, and 51.5%, respectively. Intersecting pattern was also common in Mongol females in the compartments 1, 2, 7, and 8 having 36.4%, 31.2%, 46.8%, and 57.2%, respectively. The least common pattern in Aryan-Dravidian females was partial length groove found in compartments 3, 5, 6, 7, and 8 having 9.6%, 3.2%, 4.2%, 3.2%, and 4.2%, respectively. The least common pattern in Mongol females was also partial length groove found in compartments 1, 5, 6, 7, and 8 having 5.2%, 5.2%, 10.4%, 5.2%, and 0%, respectively. In all the compartments of the lower lip in both the female groups, the partial length groove was the least common.
The analysis of lip print in each compartment in case of Aryan-Dravidian females showed that type IV was the most common in compartments 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 8, whereas type V was the common pattern in compartments 6 and 7, as shown in [Table 1]. The analysis of lip print in each compartment in case of Aryan-Dravidian males showed that type IV was the most common in compartments 2, 3, 4, 6, and 7, whereas type III was the common pattern in compartments 1, 5, and 8 as shown in [Table 2]. The least common pattern in Aryan-Dravidian females was type II in compartments 3, 5, 6, 7, and 8, but type I was the least common in compartments 2 and 4 and type V was the least common pattern in compartment 1, as shown in [Table 3]. The least common pattern in Aryan-Dravidian males was type V in compartments 1, 2, 4, 5, and 8, whereas type II was the least common in compartments 3, 6, and 7, as shown in [Table 4].
Type IV was the most common pattern in Mongol females in compartments 1, 2, 7, and 8, whereas type V was common in compartment 3 and type I was the most common pattern in compartment 6, as shown in [Table 5]. Type IV was the most common pattern in Mongol males in compartments 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, and 8, whereas type III was the most common pattern in compartments 1 and 4 as shown in [Table 6]. The least common pattern in Mongol females was type II in compartments 5, 6, 7, and 8, whereas type I was the least common in compartments 2 and 3 and type V in compartments 1 and 4, as shown in [Table 7]. The least common pattern in Mongol males was type V in compartments 1, 2, 4, and 8, whereas type III was the least common in compartments 6 and 7 and type II in compartment 5 and type I in compartment 3, as shown in [Table 8].
Sixteen percent of all the lip prints studied which were of poor quality were repeated.
| Discussion | | |
Lip prints are very useful in forensic investigation and personal identification. Like finger prints, even lip prints can be instrumental in identifying a person positively. Indians are closer to Mongoloids than to Caucasoids or Negroids as indicated by the phylogenetic tree. [1] Most of the studies on lip prints are done in their own population. In this study, we tried to compare other Indians with Manipuri who are genetically very similar and are both close to Mongoloid race.
Overall no one had single type of lip prints in all the compartments and no two individuals or more than two individuals had similar type of lip prints. The results showed that the most common pattern in males and females of both the groups (Aryan-Dravidian, Mongols) was intersecting pattern. The least common pattern in both groups of males was reticular. These results coincide with the study done by Dr. Saraswathi, [5] whereas the least common pattern in both female groups was partial length groove which did not coincide with the results of the above study.
When we compared the lip prints of [Aryan-Dravidian] and Mongol females, the most common (type IV) and the least common (type II) types were the same. The lip prints among Aryan-Dravidian and Mongol males showed that the most common (type IV) and the least common (type V) types were the same. The difference lies in the least common pattern among males and females of both the groups. The female group showed type II as the least common, and type V was the least common among male study groups. But when a compartment wise analysis was done, they showed a varied pattern as depicted in the tables.
For successful prints, the lines on the lips need to be recognizable, not smudged, neither too light nor too dark and the entire upper and lower lip must be visible. Some of the prints which were smudged belonged to both boys and girls who had applied too thick a layer of lipstick. When the recording was repeated using a thinner or appropriate layer of lipstick, the prints were found to be of pretty good quality, therefore giving an impression that the amount of lipstick on the lip and the amount of pressure applied while taking the print on the cellophane strip might influence the quality of the lip print.
The prints at the corner of the lip were not very clear even in the prints of very good quality which justifies the finding of Sivapathasundharam's study that it is usually the center strip of the lip which can be recorded better. [9]
| Conclusion | | |
Findings from lip print studies make a strong case for their use in solving crimes. Although not useful for identification under conditions where only skeletal structures remain, intact lips provide prints that can provide valuable legal evidence. With increasing number of unsolved crimes, the criminal justice community must look seriously at any new method that provides the evidence to solve the crimes. Lip print varies in different parts of the lip, which establishes that every individual has got unique lip print and if ante-mortem record is prepared it can be compared with post-mortem record for personal identification. In conclusion, in the present study it is established that there is no similarity of lip prints from one individual to another individual and between males and females. Lip prints can and should be included in the forensic sciences arena as a legitimate means of identifying persons of interest. Regarding the comparison with Mongols, more studies with a larger sample size is necessary.
| References | | |
| 1. | Suzuki K, Tsuchihashi Y. Personal identification by means of lip print. J Forensic Med 1970;17:52-7. 
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| 2. | Acharya AB, Sivapathasundharam B. Forensic odontology. In: Rajendran R, Sivapathasundharam B. editors. Shafer's Textbook of Oral Pathology. 5 th ed. New Delhi: Elsevier; 2006. p. 1199-227.
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| 3. | Roychoudhary AK. Gene diversity in Indian populations. Hum Genet 2004;40:99-106.
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| 4. | Aggrawal A. The importance of lip prints (Forensic files). Available from: http://lifeloom.com//II2Aggrawal.htm. [Last cited on 2010].
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| 5. | Santos M. Queiloscopy: A supplementary stomatological means of identification. Int Microform J Legal Med 1967. p. 2.
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| 6. | Suzuki K, Tsuchihashi Y. Two criminal cases of lip print. ACTA Criminol Jpn 1975;41:61-4.
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| 7. | Suzuki K, Tsuchihashi Y. A new attempt of personal identification by means of lip print. J Indian Dent Assoc 1970;42:8-9.
[PUBMED] |
| 8. | Saraswathi TR, Mishra G, Ranganathan K. Study of lip prints. J Forensic Dent Sci 2009;1:28-31.
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| 9. | Sivapathasundharam B, Prakash PA, Sivakumar G. Lip prints (cheiloscopy). Indian J Dent Res 2001;12:234-7.
[PUBMED] |
Correspondence Address:
Prathibha Prasad
Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Pathology, College of Dentistry, Gulf Medical University, Ajman
United Arab Emirates
 Source of Support: None, Conflict of Interest: None  | Check |
DOI: 10.4103/0970-9290.93453
[Figure 1], [Figure 2], [Figure 3], [Figure 4], [Figure 5]
[Table 1], [Table 2], [Table 3], [Table 4], [Table 5], [Table 6], [Table 7], [Table 8] |
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