Abstract
BackgroundPoroscopy, as a means of personal identification, is largely unexplored. The present study aims at assessing the reproducibility of fingerprint microfeatures namely, pore area, inter-distance, and angle, in fingerprints obtained on two surfaces namely, glass and sticky side of adhesive tape, for a period of ten consecutive days. As far as the authors are aware, no prior research has attempted to evaluate pore parameters on sticky side of adhesive tape.MethodsPlain-inked fingerprints of the left thumb, right thumb, and right index finger were collected on two surfaces namely, glass and sticky side of adhesive tape (using two methods) for ten consecutive days. Photomicrographs were captured and four pores, lying on the same ridge and having clear well-defined margins, were selected from the central region of each print. These specific sweat pores were used to measure the pore area, inter-distance, and angle using Image Pro® Software. Data were analyzed using Statistical Product and Service Solutions (SPSS) software version 16. One way analysis of variance (ANOVA) was carried out using “area,” “length,” and “angle” as the dependent variables.ResultsResults obtained depict pore area, inter-distance, and angle to be significant (p<0.001), on all 10 days for both the surfaces. In terms of quality, better pore details were depicted by fingerprints obtained on the sticky side of adhesive tape (using procedure (iii), wherein the sticky side of adhesive tape was pressed against the inked thumb of the participant). Furthermore, the pore area was found to be non-reproducible while the pore inter-distance and angle were found to be reliable and reproducible in nature.ConclusionsCrime scene fingerprints should be first matched with specimen fingerprints on the basis of ridge characteristics. However, on occasions when sufficient number of ridge characteristics are not available for comparison, sweat pores should be employed. This study highlights the reproducibility and reliability of pore inter-distance and angle and encourages their use in fingerprint matching.
Highlights
Poroscopy, as a means of personal identification, is largely unexplored
In terms of quality, out of the two surfaces, i.e., glass and sticky side of adhesive tape, better pore details were visible in prints obtained on the sticky side of adhesive tape (Fig. 1)
Area The size of pores was not found to be reproducible as coefficient of variation (% C.V.) was beyond the normal acceptable level for pores recorded over a period of ten consecutive days
Summary
As a means of personal identification, is largely unexplored. The present study aims at assessing the reproducibility of fingerprint microfeatures namely, pore area, inter-distance, and angle, in fingerprints obtained on two surfaces namely, glass and sticky side of adhesive tape, for a period of ten consecutive days. Fingerprints have great discriminatory power and are one of the most important and commonly encountered evidences at the scene of crime (SOC) (Thakar and Sharma 2016; Vij 2001) Due to their unique, immutable, and classifiable nature, fingerprints have been universally accepted as a means of personal identification since centuries. Fingerprints retrieved from the SOC can be complete or partial (fragmented) In case of the former, Kaur and Dhall Egyptian Journal of Forensic Sciences (2022) 12:7 identification process, i.e., analysis-comparison-evaluation and verification (ACE-V), is relatively simple to conduct. The latter poses many problems mainly due to insufficient landmarks or level two details, unspecified orientation, and non-linear distortion (Gupta and Sutton 2010). The specialized study of sweat pores found on the papillary ridges of the skin, can be especially useful in such cases (Ashbaugh and Houck 2005; Bindra et al 2000; Cai et al 2017; Gupta and Sutton 2010; Lee et al 2014; Nagesh et al 2011; Oklevski 2011; Park et al 2016; Zhao et al 2010a, 2010b)
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