human identification is of paramount importance and it is indeed challenging considering the fact that every individual has distinctive trait . identity  is a set of physical characteristics , functional or psychic , normal or pathological , that define an individual . although dna comparisons and finger print analysis are common techniques employed to ensure fast and secure identification , there are certain crime scenarios where other supplemental aids become essential . moreover , with tremendous demand placed upon law enforcement to provide justice , it is logical to use any type of physical characteristic to identify a suspect . coincidently , the mouth allows for a myriad of possibilities which aids in identification of subjects in a defined cohort . the data obtained can be compared to real - life scenarios serving in small population groups with varying ethnic and racial backgrounds . our study sample comprised 100 female students , aged from 17 to 22 years , with different ethnic backgrounds , but staying together in the university campus . an informed consent was taken from all the study subjects , along with the institutional ethical committee approval ( no . only 91 were considered for analysis because of the unavailability of appropriate prints and impressions . for the analysis of lip prints , the materials used were lipstick ( elle 18 , 026 maroon iris ) , lipstick applicator , cellophane tape , white bond paper ( royal executive bond , 85 gsm , premium white a4 sheets ) , and magnifying glass . only subjects with full complement of teeth were included , and those who were hypersensitive to cosmetics or presented with any pathology like ulcer or trauma to the lips were excluded . for recording the lip prints , lips were initially wiped clean using tissue paper following which the lipstick was applied gently using a lipstick applicator from the central to the lateral portion of the upper lip with a single stroke . the subjects were then asked to clutch both the lips to ensure that the lipstick application was uniform . following 2 min of waiting , the glue portion of the cellophane tape was used to obtain the impression of the lip . this record was immediately transferred on to a white bond paper by gently sticking the cellophane tape . this method , besides serving as patient 's permanent lip record could also be safely preserved for subsequent analysis . for analysis , each lip print was topographically divided into six areas , and only the central portion of the lower lip was considered . the analysis of the prints was based on the numerical superiority of the patterns of the line visible in the area of study . if two patterns predominated , then the lip print was regarded as undetermined . for further categorization of lip prints , type 1 presented with distinct vertical grooves that run across the entire lip ; type 1 was similar to type 1 , but did not extend the entire lip surface ; type 2 were the branched grooves ; type 3 showed intersected grooves ; type 4 presented with reticular grooves ; and type 5 includes grooves that can not be determined morphologically . for analysis of palatal rugae , the materials used were the upper impression trays , alginate impression material ( zelgen plus , dentsply ) , dental stone ( denstone ) , graphite lead black pencil , and magnifying glass . besides fulfilling the criteria of having the full complement of teeth , abnormalities like severe malocclusion , palatal pathologies , denture wearers , and tobacco - associated and parafunctional habits were excluded . to record palatal rugae , alginate impression of the maxillary arch was obtained and the cast made with dental stone . a plaster base was positioned for each cast for preservation of cast model and easier tracing for interpretation . the outline of rugae was traced on these casts using a sharp graphite pencil under adequate light . the palatal rugae pattern was then analyzed on these casts using the magnifying glass . as studying the pattern was our objective than assessing the number , unification , and direction of rugae , the analysis was performed using modified lysell classification in which the rugae was divided into four types based on their shape . it was classified as curved if the rugae pattern was crescent shaped and curved gently , wavy if it was slightly curved at the origin and termination , straight if the course of rugae was straight from origin to termination , circular if the rugae formed a definite continuous ring , and undetermined if the rugae pattern did not fall into any of the above types . the record of finger print impressions was obtained using printer 's black ink , white bond paper ( royal executive bond , 85 gsm , premium white a4 sheets ) , and magnifying glass . the subjects included were all healthy , and individuals with physical disability , systemic illness , or syndromes were excluded . the imprint obtained from the left thumb using printer 's black ink was transferred on to a white bond paper and analyzed using magnification lens . analysis of finger print was carried out using the most widely accepted michael and kucken classification , which classifies finger print pattern as the loop , whorl , arch - like , and composite patterns . all the above values were subjected to chi - square test to examine the correlation of lip prints , palatal prints , and finger prints . our observation revealed that the most common pattern of lip print was the reticular ( type 4 pattern , 30 out of 91 subjects , 33.3% ) , followed by branched ( type 2 , 26 out of 91 subjects , 28.5% ) , complete vertical ( type 1 pattern , 21 out of 91 , 23.07% ) , incomplete vertical ( type 1 , 8 out of 91 , 8.79% ) , and undetermined ( type 5 , 1 out of 91 , 1% ) . there was no intersected ( type 3 ) pattern noted [ figures 1 and 2 ] . the most common pattern of palatal rugae observed was wavy ( 48 out of 91 cases , 52% ) , followed by curved ( 17 out of 91 cases , 18.6% ) , straight ( 10 out of 91 cases , 10.9% ) , and undetermined ( 5 out of 91 cases , 5.4% ) . there were no circular types of rugae pattern in any of the study subjects [ figures 3 and 4 ] . with regard to finger print , the loop pattern was most common ( 44 out of 91 cases , 48.3 ) , followed by whorl pattern ( 20 out of 91 cases , 21.9% ) , arch pattern 13 out of 91 cases , 14.28% ) , and the composite pattern ( 9 out of 91 cases , 9.89% ) [ figure 5 ] . distribution of pattern of lip prints in study subjects patterns of lip prints : ( a ) complete vertical , ( b ) incomplete vertical , ( c ) reticular , ( d ) branched , ( e ) undetermined distribution of pattern of palatal rugae in study subjects patterns of palatal rugae : ( a ) curved , ( b ) wavy , ( c ) straight , ( d ) undetermined distribution of pattern of finger prints in study subjects the correlation of lip prints , palatal prints , and finger prints by chi - square test showed no statistical significance . correlation of reticular pattern ( lip prints ) and wavy pattern ( palatal rugae ) accounted for 47% of the cases ( p = 0.3 ) . incidentally , the reticular pattern ( lip prints ) and loop type ( finger print ) showed a remarkable 59% , accounting for the highest percentage as compared to the other combinations ( p = 0.4 ) . lastly , correlation of loop type ( finger prints ) and wavy type ( palatal rugae ) accounted for 55% of the cases ( p = 0.5 ) . in the absence of antemortem data , identification is usually established by the testimony of eye witness . in view of forensic jurisprudence , detecting and identifying lip print at a site of calamity of any nature may prove to provide key evidence . external surface of the lip has many elevations and depressions forming a characteristic pattern called lip prints . as it is genotypically determined , the importance of using it for forensic investigations is justified as the pattern never undergoes changes from birth until the body undergoes decomposition . moreover , it also gives an intuition into the type of the event , number of people involved , gender , cosmetics used , any habits , and pathological states associated with the lips . with regard to the type of lip print from studies in indian female population , a great degree of inconsistency is evident based on the previous study reports . the presence of complete vertical ( type 1 ) and incomplete vertical ( type 1 ) patterns has been reported . contrary to these observations , gondivkar et al . found a prevalence of branched pattern ( type 2 ) , while intersected and branched pattern ( types 3 and 2 , respectively ) were the most predominant in a study reported by saraswathi et al . similar distribution pattern is available in reports of gopichand et al . and domiaty et al . , in which the intersected ( type 2 ) and the branched ( type 3 ) were the most frequent patterns , respectively . interestingly , our observation suggested that the reticular pattern was the most predominant ( type 4 patterns , 30 out of 91 subjects , 33.3% ) and none of the subjects presented with intersected pattern ( type 3 ) . the varied presentation of lip prints is perhaps due to difference in sampling methods and inclusion of diverse population groups with varied ethnicity . nevertheless , this unpredictability in outcome may prove to be ideal for forensic investigation as the likelihood of uniqueness of pattern in individual is higher . similar to presentation of lip prints , the palatal rugae has much to offer as a useful forensic tool . the rugae are protected from trauma , insulated by heat of the tongue , and hence survive postmortem insults . although a slight alteration in the relationship of the rugae to the teeth occurs during orthodontic tooth movement , no major alteration in shape of rugae is noted . taking this into account , analysis of palatal rugae was carried out by only taking the shape or pattern of rugae into consideration . the rugae also provide sufficient information to validate identity beyond reasonable doubt and would serve in any forensic investigation . the most predominant pattern in our study was wavy , followed by curved pattern , which is in accordance with the other studies . incidentally , a predominance of wavy pattern has also been noted in australian aborigines ( kapali et al . ) and the nepalese population ( shreenivas et al . ) . in contrast , saraf et al . noted that the converging pattern was predominant , which was not taken into consideration in our study . these variable results could be attributable to variation in ethnicities and geographic background . as our study comprised random selection of subjects with varying background , it would be inappropriate to conclude the most common palatal rugae pattern . it is important to assess the population difference by assessing discrete variables like rugae shape than the continuous variables like rugae length . the analysis of finger prints as a form of identification has been used since time immemorial . no two finger prints even in a given individual have been found to have the same ridge pattern and this remains unchanged throughout life . this uniqueness in its presentation is the very fact that the analysis of finger print offers an excellent means of forensic investigations . today , automated finger print identification has been employed among law enforcement agencies throughout the world . our observation of loop pattern being the most common , followed by whorl pattern , arch pattern , and the composite pattern is consistent with the universal observation . the comparison and correlation of the lip prints , palatal prints , and finger prints did not yield any significant statistical significance . however , one study has drawn a significant correlation between vertical type of lip prints and arch - type finger prints . as the sampling in our case was purposive with the sole objective of identification of individuals in a setup which comprises heterogeneous mix of population however , continuation of this work including more subjects and further validation of results may provide some clues of any correlation of these three unique patterns of identification . although the science of forensics revolves around the four pillars of age , sex , race , and stature , we have made an attempt to study the pattern of three commonly used parameters for forensic identification in a small , yet diverse group , with a purpose of preparing a blueprint of individuals . this attempt is important as we would be establishing the forensic signature using this combination approach for human identification . correlation of all three parameters is the first of its kind and has not been reported so far for reasons unknown . this preliminary observation of obtaining the indelible identification mark is the first step in generating a database which is practiced worldwide . as for instance , the palatoscopy has been used for necroidentification , and the brazilian aeronautic ministry has made it mandatory to provide rugoscopy of pilots for victim identification in the event of disaster . likewise , in poland , an archive of lip print records is initiated and these records have been included in the casework of crime investigation department as an evidence for justice in court . the world 's first ever finger print bureau was established due to the pioneering work of sir william herschel in kolkata , india . the importance of establishing the database of all the three essential elements of human identification is the need of the hour . although an extensive scientific research on the study of the lip prints , palatal rugae , and finger prints is available , the study comparing and correlating all these three variables is minimal . a forensic bank has to be developed worldwide in order to store all these evidences , thereby developing a cohesive system . our attempt was to initiate the process at the regional level , which if continued further will allow secure and faster identification with these supplemental evidences . this is the first study which has tried to correlate all the three parameters , but the interpretations derived from this study are precluded by limited sample size which definitely calls for a more extensive and detailed research in a more logical manner to authenticate our findings . therefore , patterns definitely act as aids in population subtyping because lip prints speak the untold , rugae see the unseen , and finger prints solves the entire mystery .
background : identification is of paramount importance in any forensic investigation 
 . positive identification of living or deceased using distinctive traits is a cornerstone of forensic science . 
 the uniqueness of these patterns and subtle distinction between traits has offered worthy supplemental tools in establishing the true nature of facts.aim:the first aim of our study was to determine the most common pattern of lip prints , palatal rugae , and finger prints in the study subjects . secondly , to determine if any specific pattern of lip print , palatal rugae , or the finger print concurs in individuals , and thereby establish a database of these prototypes for human identification from a defined cohort.materials and methods : the sample size comprised 100 female students of a dental college staying together in the hostel . 
 lip prints were recorded on a white bond sheet using lipstick , palatal rugae on dental casts , and finger prints using printer 's blue ink.results:our observation suggested that the reticular pattern of lip print , the wavy pattern of palatal rugae , and the loop pattern of finger prints were the predominant patterns . 
 correlation of the three parameters did not reveal significant differences.conclusions:this approach of human identification utilizing conventional techniques and relevant parameters is pertinent in defined groups . 
 however , larger representative sample with robust analytical tools may provide a necessary blueprint of human identification .