Transgenerational effects of parental cardiovascular disease and risk factors on offspring mortality: family-linkage data from the HUNT Study, Norway.
BACKGROUND
Cardiovascular risk factors are known to be associated between parents and offspring. However, whether these associations are reflected in increased offspring mortality has not been extensively studied.


DESIGN
This was a family study of 32,536 father-offspring and 39,614 mother-offspring pairs who participated in the HUNT Study, Norway.


METHODS
Adjusted hazard ratios (HRs) for offspring total and cardiovascular mortality associated with parental levels of cardiovascular disease risk factors were estimated using Cox regression.


RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS
Fathers' and mothers' reporting of cardiovascular disease (HRs: 1.18; 95% CI 1.04-1.32 and 1.20; 1.07-1.35, respectively), diabetes (HRs: 1.22; 95% CI 1.00-1.49 and 1.21; 1.05-1.40, respectively), and current smoking (HRs: 1.21; 95% CI 1.08-1.36 and 1.30; 1.15-1.47, respectively) was associated with total mortality in offspring. An inverse association was found with maternal height (HR: 0.95; 95% CI 0.91-0.99), and a suggestive inverse association with paternal height (HR: 0.98; 95% CI 0.93-1.03). Relations with offspring cardiovascular mortality were less clear and consistent. Offspring whose parents both had a risk factor did not seem to have higher mortality than would be expected from the independent effects of each parent.
['Vik|Kirsti L|KL|', 'Romundstad|Pål|P|', 'Carslake|David|D|', 'Davey Smith|George|G|', 'Nilsen|Tom I L|TI|']
D000328:Adult D001827:Body Height D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases D003920:Diabetes Mellitus D005260:Female D020022:Genetic Predisposition to Disease D006801:Humans D006937:Hypercholesterolemia D006973:Hypertension D008137:Longitudinal Studies D008297:Male D008875:Middle Aged D009664:Norway D009765:Obesity D010290:Parents D016016:Proportional Hazards Models D012042:Registries D012307:Risk Factors D012907:Smoking
cardiovascular diseases risk factors Epidemiology intergenerational relations