Patterns of palatal rugae in the adult Egyptian population

:Rugoscopy refers to the study of palatal rugae in order to establish a personal identity. A significant association has been found between rugae forms and ethnicity which may represent a valuable finding in forensic medicine. The present study was aimed to analyze the pattern of palatal rugae in the adult Egyptian population and to examine for any sex differences. A total of 108 pre-orthodontic dental casts were enrolled in this study (54 males and 54 females) in the age group of 18–35 years. The pattern of palatal rugae regarding the number, size and shape of rugae was identified according to the classification made by Kapali et al. Primary rugae type showed the highest frequency while the most frequent shape was the wavy shape, followed by the straight shape. The predominant direction of palatal rugae was the forward direction. Also, the converging form of unification was found to be more prevalent than the diverging form. No significant difference was found between males and females except for the curved shape that was significantly greater among females. This study showed a specific rugae pattern in the studied adult Egyptian population when compared to other populations’ patterns that are reported in the literature.