I burned my finger. Will that lock me out of devices that require a fingerprint?

Fingerprints, also called dermatoglyphs, develop as early as three months of gestation and are entirely unique to each individual.

It’s why they are commonly used as a form of biometric security to log into phones, computers and other devices. Interestingly, a patient of mine burned her hand in the kitchen and wondered if the burn would interfere with her ability to log into devices using her fingerprints

Here’s the answer:

Fingerprints can be temporarily or permanently damaged

Fingerprints can be permanently damaged, but it would take a third-degree burn or other serious injury that affects the deeper layers of skin, where the fingerprint patterns are “encoded.” A minor burn in the kitchen or other minor skin injury won’t permanently change your fingerprints. However, you might have trouble using fingerprint logins temporarily while your skin heals, depending on the severity of the burn, cut or other injury. It can take around a month for damaged fingerprints to show back up on your skin.

I recommend keeping an aloe plant in your kitchen to apply to minor burns for a fast relief. Aloe has also been shown to speed up wound healing, thanks to its antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory properties.

What are fingerprints?

Fingerprints are the tiny ridges, valleys and whorls found on each fingertip. Interestingly, we don’t know much about what causes them and what their purpose is. However, genetics may play a factor in the development of our fingerprint patterns.

Arare condition called adermatoglyphia causes people to be born without fingerprints. This condition appears to be caused by a mutation in a specific gene, leading scientists to conclude that fingertip formation must be due to genetics, at least in part.

Bottom line

It would take a serious burn to permanently affect your fingerprint pattern, but minor burns or injuries can temporarily affect your fingerprints. To prevent temporary hiccups when signing into fingerprint devices, consider scanning a fingerprint from your non-dominant hand, since burns and other injuries tend to happen on your dominant hand. Some devices also allow you to set up a backup fingerprint from another finger.

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