Study and comparison of lip print patterns among Indian and Malaysian dental students

Aim: To assess and compare the quadrant-wise predominant lip print patterns among male and female Indian and Malaysian dental students. Materials and Methods: The study population comprised 64 individuals in the age group of 16-28 years. The lip print of each individual was taken using cellophane tape without any distortion. The cellophane tape was then stuck onto a plain white A4-size bond paper and was divided into four quadrants, which were analyzed using magnifying lens. Suzuki and Tsuchihashi′s classification was followed to define the patterns of the grooves. Results and Conclusion: The predominant lip pattern in all the four quadrants for Indians was Type II and for Malaysians it was Type I I . Type II was the predominant pattern in all the four quadrants for Indians irrespective of gender. The predominant pattern for Malaysian males in all the four quadrants was Type I I , while the predominant pattern for Malaysian females in quadrants I, II, and IV was Type I I , and in quadrant III it was Type II. Overall analysis of lip prints showed that there is a significant difference (P < 0.05) between the different patterns of Malaysian and Indian dental students. As the literature review shows less number of studies done on lip print patterns of Malaysians, our study focusses on the study and comparison of lip print patterns of Malaysian dental students with Indians dental students.