Assessment of Dental Caries Risk in Relation to Fingerprint Pattern in Children With Hearing Impairment: A Preliminary Study

Objective: The objective of this study was to assess the risk of dental caries in relation to fingerprint patterns in children with hearing impairment. Methods: This study involved 373 children selected from 3 different schools of children with hearing impairment. Dental caries status was recorded using the DMFT index. Participants were then categorized into 3 distinct groups. Dermatoglyphic patterns on all 10 palmar digits of each individual were recorded using the Cummins and Midlo method. The patterns were analyzed using a magnifying lens (X2 magnification). Results: The gender distribution among the participants was 54.2% male and 45.8% female. The average age of the participants was 14.19 ± 2.146 years. In terms of communication methods, the majority of participants (95.4%) used sign language, while a small percentage (3.2%) relied on lip reading, and only 1.3% used a hearing aid. Conclusions: No single fingerprint pattern demonstrated a significant predominance associated with dental caries incidence in the study.