TY - JOUR
T1 - On the heritability of psoriatic arthritis. Disease concordance among monozygotic and dizygotic twins
AU - Pedersen, Ole Birger
AU - Svendsen, Anders Jørgen
AU - Ejstrup, Leif
AU - Skytthe, Axel
AU - Junker, Peter
PY - 2008/1/24
Y1 - 2008/1/24
N2 - OBJECTIVE: In a nationwide unselected twin population to estimate the relative importance of genetic and environmental effectors in the etiopathogenesis of psoriatic arthritis (PsA). METHODS: The study comprised three Danish nationwide twin cohorts. In 1994 and 2002 a total of 37,388 and 46,418 Danish twin individuals respectively were asked by questionnaire if they had PsA. Twins reporting PsA were invited to participate in a clinical examination. Patients were classified according to the Moll and Wright (M&W) and the CASPAR criteria. Heritability was estimated by probandwise concordance rates and variance component analysis. RESULTS: 228 twin individuals reported PsA. Following diagnostic validation in 184 (81%), 50 probands were diagnosed with PsA according to the M&W criteria. Five of their co-twins were either dead, had emigrated, or did not participate in the twin study and nine did not respond, resulting in 36 complete pairs. A total of 1/10 MZ pairs and 1/26 DZ pairs were concordant for PsA, yielding a 6.2% difference in proportions (95% CI: -11%, 37%). 5/10 MZ pairs and 4/26 DZ pairs were concordant for psoriatic skin disease implying a 35% difference (95% CI: 2%, 60%, p < 0.05). CONCLUSION: This first twin study on PsA confirms that genes are important in the causation of psoriatic skin disease. Despite the limited statistical power, the almost identical concordance rates for PsA in MZ and DZ twins stresses the importance of continued search for non genetic effectors in PsA.
AB - OBJECTIVE: In a nationwide unselected twin population to estimate the relative importance of genetic and environmental effectors in the etiopathogenesis of psoriatic arthritis (PsA). METHODS: The study comprised three Danish nationwide twin cohorts. In 1994 and 2002 a total of 37,388 and 46,418 Danish twin individuals respectively were asked by questionnaire if they had PsA. Twins reporting PsA were invited to participate in a clinical examination. Patients were classified according to the Moll and Wright (M&W) and the CASPAR criteria. Heritability was estimated by probandwise concordance rates and variance component analysis. RESULTS: 228 twin individuals reported PsA. Following diagnostic validation in 184 (81%), 50 probands were diagnosed with PsA according to the M&W criteria. Five of their co-twins were either dead, had emigrated, or did not participate in the twin study and nine did not respond, resulting in 36 complete pairs. A total of 1/10 MZ pairs and 1/26 DZ pairs were concordant for PsA, yielding a 6.2% difference in proportions (95% CI: -11%, 37%). 5/10 MZ pairs and 4/26 DZ pairs were concordant for psoriatic skin disease implying a 35% difference (95% CI: 2%, 60%, p < 0.05). CONCLUSION: This first twin study on PsA confirms that genes are important in the causation of psoriatic skin disease. Despite the limited statistical power, the almost identical concordance rates for PsA in MZ and DZ twins stresses the importance of continued search for non genetic effectors in PsA.
U2 - 10.1136/ard.2007.078428
DO - 10.1136/ard.2007.078428
M3 - Journal article
C2 - 18218666
SN - 0003-4967
JO - Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases
JF - Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases
ER -