Fingerprint comparison. I: Similarity of fingerprints

Fingerprints from 61 pairs of male monozygotic twins (MZ), 47 pairs of female MZ, 40 pairs of same-sex male dizygotic twins (DZ), 44 pairs of same-sex female DZ, 4 pairs of opposite-sex DZ, and 28 brothers and 31 sisters of those twins are used for the study of fingerprint similarities. Similarities of fingerprint pattern, ridge count, and minutiae are evaluated for two population groups genetically related to each other in different degrees. It is concluded that fingerprint similarities, including pattern, ridge count, and possibly minutiae, between MZ individuals are significantly higher than those between other population groups, including DZ twins.