A Pilot Study: Nailing Indian Elections with the Indelible Ink Mark

Area of Science:

• Medical Science
• Biometrics
• Public Health

Background:

• India's indelible election ink, developed by National Physical Laboratories (NPL) in 1962, is manufactured by Mysore Paints and Varnish Ltd.
• Since 2006, election ink is applied to the voter's left index fingernail, marking the nail from the distal end proximally to the cuticle.
• This election ink mark provides a unique opportunity to study nail growth patterns.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the feasibility of utilizing the indelible election ink mark as a nationwide tool for collecting nail growth data.
• To assess the practicality of this method in a clinical setting for measuring nail elongation.

Main Methods:

• A study was conducted on 74 patients presenting to a tertiary hospital in South India.
• The indelible ink mark on the left index fingernail from a recent election served as the reference point.
• The rate of nail growth was measured using the ink mark as a biological marker.

Main Results:

• The average nail growth rate was determined to be 0.113 mm/day.
• Higher nail growth rates were observed in females, younger individuals, during pregnancy, and in patients with psoriasis or on nutritional supplementation.
• These findings suggest influencing factors on nail elongation.

Conclusions:

• The study successfully demonstrated the potential of the election ink mark as an efficient tool for measuring nail growth rates.
• The observed nail growth rate was slightly higher than previously reported in similar studies.
• A limited sample size was identified as a key limitation, warranting further investigation with larger cohorts.