Association of adoptive child's thought disorders and schizophrenia spectrum disorders with their genetic liability for schizophrenia spectrum disorders, season of birth and parental Communication Deviance.
Joint effects of genotype and the environment have turned out to be significant in the development of psychotic disorders. The purpose of the present study was to assess the association of an adoptive child׳s thought and schizophrenia spectrum disorders with genetic and environmental risk indicators and their interactions. A subgroup of the total sample used in the Finnish Adoptive Family Study was considered in the present study. The subjects were 125 adoptees at a high (n=53) or low (n=72) genetic risk of schizophrenia spectrum disorders and their adoptive parents. The risk factors evaluated were the adoptive child's genetic risk for schizophrenia spectrum disorders, winter or spring birth and parental Communication Deviance (CD). Thought disorders in the adoptees were assessed using the Thought Disorder Index and diagnoses were made according to DSM-III-R criteria. The adoptive child׳s Thought Disorder Index was only associated with parental Communication Deviance. The adoptive child's heightened genetic risk or winter or spring birth or parental CD or their interactions did not predict the adoptee's schizophrenia spectrum disorder. The results suggest that studies taking several risk indicators and their interactions into account may change views on the mutual significance of well-known risk factors.
Oulu University Hospital, Department of Psychiatry, Box 26, FI-90029 OYS, Finland. Electronic address: riikka.roisko@fimnet.fi.
Riikka
R
Roisko
Institute of Clinical Medicine, Department of Psychiatry, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland.
Karl-Erik
KE
Wahlberg
Institute of Clinical Medicine, Department of Psychiatry, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland.
Helinä
H
Hakko
Institute of Clinical Medicine, Department of Psychiatry, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland.
Pekka
P
Tienari
D000293:Adolescent; D000300:Adoption; D000328:Adult; D002648:Child; D003147:Communication Disorders; D005260:Female; D059647:Gene-Environment Interaction; D020022:Genetic Predisposition to Disease; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010290:Parents / Q000523:psychology*; D012307:Risk Factors; D012559:Schizophrenia / Q000209:etiology* / Q000235:genetics; D012621:Seasons; D013850:Thinking / Q000502:physiology*; D055815:Young Adult
Adoption; CD; Endophenotype; Genetic Predisposition; Gene–environment interaction; TDI; Winter/spring birth