Significance of the single umbilical artery. A clinical, radiological, chromosomal, and dermatoglyphic study.

Vlietinck, R. F., Thiery, M., Orye, E., de Clercq, A., and van Vaerenbergh, P. (1972). Archives of Disease in Childhood, 47, 639. Significance of the single umbilical artery: a clinical, radiological, chromosomal, and dermatoglyphic study. A single umbilical artery is present in about 1% of all singletons. It is associated with a wide range of congenital malformations. Chromosomal analysis of our surviving cases gave normal results. Dermatoglyphic patterns were normal, except that the boys showed a threeto fourfold increase in the number of the radial loops on the fingers, and a lowering of the total finger ridge count. Evidence favouring a common non-genetic cause for both a single umbilical artery and the associated malformations is discussed.