Correlations of cardiovascular disease risk factors between African American siblings.

Abstract

This study examines intrasibling correlations at 2 points during childhood for African American siblings with the same father, different fathers, a father present in the home, and no father present in the home. Cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors were assessed in 267 pairs of African American siblings (visit 1) and in 79 of these siblings approximately 28 months later (visit 2). As a group, correlations of CVD risk factors between African American siblings with the same father were greater than those for African American siblings with different fathers in visit 1 (P <.05). However, having a father present in the home was associated with significantly lower intrasibling correlations for girth and total cholesterol in visit 2 (P <.005). Intrasibling correlations for the 4 family subgroups suggest that CVD risk factors were most similar in siblings who shared the same father but who had no father present in the home. Intrasibling correlations for African American children were influenced by whether they shared the same father and whether a father was present in their home, reflecting both genetic and environmental influences. Family composition should be considered when family CVD risk factors are used to predict CVD risk in children.