Heritability a Considerable Risk Factor for Heart Failure?

Heart failure (HF) in a parent may be an HF risk factor that should be considered in the clinical setting, according to a study recently published in JAMA. Attempting to determine the heritability of HF, researchers conducted a nationwide adoptive study observing Heart Failure in adoptees and adoptive and biological parents. Adoptees used were born in Sweden from 1942 to 1990.

Using 21,463 adoptees, 35,016 adoptive parents, and 43,286 biological parents the researchers found that Heart Failure occurred in 194 adoptees, 3,972 adoptive parents, and 3,657 biological parents. Odds ratio (OR) was 1.45 in adoptees for biological parents with HF compared to those with no affected parent. This OR was found to be 1.58 when cardiomyopathies were excluded. Heritability of HF was found to be 26% via Falconer regression, and 34% when cardiomyopathies wee excluded. They also found that approximatey twice as many men were affected by HF than females.

Researchers concluded that the occurrence of HF in a biological parent was a considerable risk factor for patient Heart Failure in the clinical setting. They noted that a limitation of their study was not knowing what age the children were when adopted but stated that this was most likely at a young age for most. They also claimed that they did not have access to smoker status, BMI, blood pressure, lipids, or glucose levels for each patient. The researchers conclude by addressing the need for further studies regarding genetic variants linked to HF.

.@JAMACardio study suggests genetic component in #HeartFailure: https://t.co/jSbGo6a2Vz

— ACC CV Quality (@ACCCVQuality) July 13, 2018

Source: JAMA