National Center for Advancing and Translational Sciences Genetic and Rare Diseases Information Center, a program of the National Center for Advancing and Translational Sciences

Adermatoglyphia



Other Names:
Absence of fingerprints; ADERM; ADG; Absence of fingerprints; ADERM; ADG; Immigration delay disease; Congenital absence of fingerprints; Isolated congenital adermatoglyphia See More
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Adermatoglyphia is a rare condition that is characterized by the lack of ridges on the skin of the fingers, toes, palms of the hand and soles of the feet. Because the pattern of these ridges form each person's unique fingerprints, people with this condition are not able to be identified by their fingerprints. In some cases, adermatoglyphia may occur without any additional signs or symptoms; however, it may be associated with other skin abnormalities including small white bumps on the face, blistering of the skin, and/or a reduced number of sweat glands on the hands and feet. Adermatoglyphia is caused by changes (mutations) in the SMARCAD1 gene and is inherited in an autosomal dominant manner. Treatment is typically only necessary if other features are present.[1][2]
Last updated: 5/4/2015

This table lists symptoms that people with this disease may have. For most diseases, symptoms will vary from person to person. People with the same disease may not have all the symptoms listed. This information comes from a database called the Human Phenotype Ontology (HPO) . The HPO collects information on symptoms that have been described in medical resources. The HPO is updated regularly. Use the HPO ID to access more in-depth information about a symptom.

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Medical Terms Other Names
Learn More:
HPO ID
Percent of people who have these symptoms is not available through HPO
Adermatoglyphia 0007455
Autosomal dominant inheritance 0000006
Clubbing
Clubbing of fingers and toes
0001217
Palmar hyperkeratosis 0010765
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Last updated: 7/1/2020

Making a diagnosis for a genetic or rare disease can often be challenging. Healthcare professionals typically look at a person’s medical history, symptoms, physical exam, and laboratory test results in order to make a diagnosis. The following resources provide information relating to diagnosis and testing for this condition. If you have questions about getting a diagnosis, you should contact a healthcare professional.

Testing Resources

  • The Genetic Testing Registry (GTR) provides information about the genetic tests for this condition. The intended audience for the GTR is health care providers and researchers. Patients and consumers with specific questions about a genetic test should contact a health care provider or a genetics professional.

If you need medical advice, you can look for doctors or other healthcare professionals who have experience with this disease. You may find these specialists through advocacy organizations, clinical trials, or articles published in medical journals. You may also want to contact a university or tertiary medical center in your area, because these centers tend to see more complex cases and have the latest technology and treatments.

If you can’t find a specialist in your local area, try contacting national or international specialists. They may be able to refer you to someone they know through conferences or research efforts. Some specialists may be willing to consult with you or your local doctors over the phone or by email if you can't travel to them for care.

You can find more tips in our guide, How to Find a Disease Specialist. We also encourage you to explore the rest of this page to find resources that can help you find specialists.

Healthcare Resources


These resources provide more information about this condition or associated symptoms. The in-depth resources contain medical and scientific language that may be hard to understand. You may want to review these resources with a medical professional.

Where to Start

In-Depth Information

  • The Monarch Initiative brings together data about this condition from humans and other species to help physicians and biomedical researchers. Monarch’s tools are designed to make it easier to compare the signs and symptoms (phenotypes) of different diseases and discover common features. This initiative is a collaboration between several academic institutions across the world and is funded by the National Institutes of Health. Visit the website to explore the biology of this condition.
  • Online Mendelian Inheritance in Man (OMIM) is a catalog of human genes and genetic disorders. Each entry has a summary of related medical articles. It is meant for health care professionals and researchers. OMIM is maintained by Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. 
  • Orphanet is a European reference portal for information on rare diseases and orphan drugs. Access to this database is free of charge.
  • PubMed is a searchable database of medical literature and lists journal articles that discuss Adermatoglyphia. Click on the link to view a sample search on this topic.

Questions sent to GARD may be posted here if the information could be helpful to others. We remove all identifying information when posting a question to protect your privacy. If you do not want your question posted, please let us know.


  1. Adermatoglyphia. Genetics Home Reference. April 2015; http://ghr.nlm.nih.gov/condition/adermatoglyphia.
  2. Nousbeck J, Sarig O, Magal L, Warshauer E, Burger B, Itin P, Sprecher E.. Mutations in SMARCAD1 cause autosomal dominant adermatoglyphia and perturb the expression of epidermal differentiation-associated genes. Br J Dermatol. December 2014; 171(6):1521-1524.