The Relationship between Palatoscopy and Face Shape among the Ibolo Ethnic Group in Nigeria

Palatoscopy is the study of palatal rugae patterns in order to utilize its uniqueness to establish the identities of individuals. Face shape refers to the geometric form of an individual’s face. The aim of this study is to determine the relationship between palatal rugae patterns and face shapes among the Ibolo ethnic group in Osun and Kwara states, Nigeria, in individuals aged 18-65. The study was conducted on 500 subjects (250 male, 250 female) of the Ibolo ethnic group in Osun and Kwara, Nigeria. The palatal rugae of each individual was captured intraorally using a Sony digital camera and a picture was taken of the subject’s face, also. The Statistical Package for Social Sciences (IBM. version 23, Armonk, New York, USA) was used to determine group differences. Using Chi-square Automatic Interaction Detector (CHAID), a model of the relationship between the predominant rugae types and face shape were described. Differences were declared significant and correlation exist when P ? 0.05. The results showed that rugae types E and D were predominant in males and females respectively and the oval face shape was the most common in both sexes. The test of association between the left anterior segment and sex was significant. The analysis showed no relationship between palatal rugae patterns and face shapes. This study shows that the face shape of an individual from the Ibolo ethnic group cannot be determined using his or her palatal rugae pattern.

Key Words: Palatoscopy, Face shape, Rugae pattern, Sex, Ibolo ethnic group