Assessing the risk of Alzheimer's disease in first-degree relatives of Alzheimer's disease cases

Abstract

SYNOPSISfamily history of Alzheimer's disease (AD) was investigated using a telephone reinterview of 99 cases and 116 controls selected from a case-control study of 170 matched pairs. It was found that the family history method used in the initial interview was satisfactory in identifying first-degree relatives and assessing their ages of birth and death, but the number of first-degree relatives suffering from AD was probably under-estimated. Family history of AD was confirmed as a risk factor for AD. Higher estimates of cumulative incidence were obtained among case relatives than among control relatives. No evidence was found to support the hypothesis that a familial form of AD is more comm..