Paternal age and mortality in nonaffective psychosis.
BACKGROUND
Advanced paternal age (APA) is associated with an increased mortality in the general population, and is a risk factor for schizophrenia. We aimed to test if APA is associated with increased mortality in people with nonaffective psychosis.


METHODS
Subjects with nonaffective psychosis who were born in Helsinki, Finland, between 1951 and 1960 (n=529) were followed until June 2006 (age 46 to 55). Hazard ratios were calculated, adjusting for subject age, age of the other parent, and gender.


RESULTS
In females but not males, there was a significant increase in all-causes mortality (HR=7.04, 95% CI 1.60-31.04, p=0.01) and natural deaths (HR=7.64, 95% CI 1.20-48.66, p=0.03) in offspring of fathers age > or =40, after adjustment for potential confounders. In males but not females, there was a significant decrease in suicides (HR=0.89, 95% CI 0.81-0.97, p=0.01) with increasing maternal age (as a continuous variable). In the entire sample, there was also a trend for decreased all-cause mortality (HR=0.96, 95% CI 0.92-1.01, p=0.08) with increasing maternal age (as a continuous variable).


CONCLUSIONS
Both paternal and maternal age may affect mortality risk in offspring with psychosis. The specific disorders and pathway(s) associated with the increase in natural cause mortality remain to be determined.
Miller
Brian
B
Department of Psychiatry and Health Behavior, Medical College of Georgia, Augusta, Georgia 30912, United States.
Pihlajamaa
Johanna
J
Haukka
Jari
J
Cannon
Mary
M
Henriksson
Markus
M
Heilä
Hannele
H
Huttunen
Matti
M
Tanskanen
Antti
A
Lönnqvist
Jouko
J
Suvisaari
Jaana
J
Kirkpatrick
Brian
B
D000367:Age Factors; D005260:Female; D005387:Finland / Q000453:epidemiology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010331:Paternal Age; D016016:Proportional Hazards Models; D011618:Psychotic Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000401:mortality*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors