title: Family studies: their role in the evaluation of genetic cardiovascular risk factors.
abstract: Early epidemiological studies showed that genetic factors contribute to the risk of cardiovascular disease. Genetic epidemiological studies based upon families can be used to investigate familial trait aggregation, to localize genes implicated in cardiovascular diseases in the human genome, and to establish the role of environmental factors. Family studies can be also used to identify the physiological role of candidate genes for cardiovascular diseases, and to characterize shared environmental risk factors and their impact on the expression of genetic predisposition. The present paper reviews the existing family studies with special emphasis on those which have studied healthy populations in relation to cardiovascular disease such as the Framingham Heart Study, the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute Family Heart Study, and the STANISLAS cohort.
authors.affiliation: INSERM U525, Nancy, France.
authors.forename: Marianne
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Mansour-Chemaly
authors.forename: Nadia
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Haddy
authors.forename: Gérard
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Siest
authors.forename: Sophie
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Visvikis
mesh_terms: D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases / Q000097:blood / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000235:genetics*; D015331:Cohort Studies; D004781:Environmental Exposure / Q000009:adverse effects; D005190:Family; D020022:Genetic Predisposition to Disease / Q000453:epidemiology; D006801:Humans; D012307:Risk Factors