Friction ridges are permanent and remain unchanged throughout life until what occurs?

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Multiple Choice

Friction ridges are permanent and remain unchanged throughout life until what occurs?

Explanation:
Friction ridges form early in life and stay essentially the same pattern throughout a person’s life. They are considered permanent, but this permanence ends when decomposition begins after death. Once decomposition starts, moisture loss, bacterial activity, and tissue breakdown distort or erase the ridge detail, making the prints unreliable or impossible to obtain. Aging or growth do not cause ridges to disappear or be replaced, so the change occurs only after death through postmortem processes.

Friction ridges form early in life and stay essentially the same pattern throughout a person’s life. They are considered permanent, but this permanence ends when decomposition begins after death. Once decomposition starts, moisture loss, bacterial activity, and tissue breakdown distort or erase the ridge detail, making the prints unreliable or impossible to obtain. Aging or growth do not cause ridges to disappear or be replaced, so the change occurs only after death through postmortem processes.

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