Dermatoglyphic fluctuating asymmetry and atypical handedness in schizophrenia

Atypical handedness and dermatoglyphic abnormalities are hypothesized to re flect a neurodevelopmental disturbance in schizophrenia. Developmental inst ability, indexed by dermatoglyphic fluctuating asymmetry (FA), reflects the degree to which an individual's ontogenetic program is maintained and prov ides a useful framework in which to consider atypical handedness in schizop hrenia. Thirty patients diagnosed with schizophrenia were compared with 37 matched healthy controls on levels of dermatoglyphic FA, a demonstration ta sk determining hand preference and a test of relative hand skill. Multivari ate analyses established that patients demonstrated greater FA and more aty pical hand skill compared with controls. In patients, but not in controls, there was a strong positive association between a measure of FA and a measu re of atypical hand skill, suggesting that these markers of neurodevelopmen tal disturbance are related in schizophrenia. On a measure of hand preferen ce, patients were more likely than controls to be classified as mixed hande d than either right or left handed. Results from the present study support the conjecture of greater developmental instability in schizophrenia affect ing neurodevelopmental processes, including those conferring manual dominan ce. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.