rss
Ann Rheum Dis 2009;68:502-507 doi:10.1136/ard.2008.089599
  • Clinical and epidemiological research

Recurrence of spondylarthropathy among first-degree relatives of patients: a systematic cross-sectional study

  1. E Dernis1,2,
  2. R Said-Nahal3,4,
  3. M-A D’Agostino3,4,
  4. P Aegerter4,5,
  5. M Dougados1,2,
  6. M Breban3,4,6,7,8
  1. 1
    Rheumatology Division, Cochin Hospital, Assistance Publique des Hôpitaux de Paris, Paris, France
  2. 2
    Université Paris-Descartes, Paris, France
  3. 3
    Rheumatology Division, Ambroise Paré Hospital, Assistance Publique des Hôpitaux de Paris, Boulogne-Billancourt, France
  4. 4
    Université Versailles-Saint-Quentin en Yvelines, Versailles, Paris, France
  5. 5
    Epidemiology and Statistics, Ambroise Paré Hospital, Assistance Publique des Hôpitaux de Paris, Boulogne-Billancourt, France
  6. 6
    INSERM U567, Paris, France
  7. 7
    CNRS UMR8104, Paris, France
  8. 8
    Institut Cochin, Paris, France
  1. M Breban, Rheumatology Division, Hôpital Ambroise Paré, 9 Avenue Charles de Gaulle, 92100, Boulogne, France; maxime.breban{at}apr.aphp.fr
  • Accepted 9 April 2008
  • Published Online First 15 April 2008

Abstract

Objective: To examine the recurrence of manifestations belonging to the spectrum of spondylarthropathy (SpA) in first-degree relatives of patients with SpA, and to estimate the recurrence risk ratio.

Methods: Parents and siblings of consecutive SpA probands have been thoroughly investigated, including clinical data collection, pelvic x ray and human leukocyte antigen (HLA)-B27 status determination. The diagnosis of SpA was made according to European Spondylarthropathy Study Group and/or the Amor criteria. The recurrence risk ratio λ1, which gives an estimate of the weight of genetic factors, was calculated as the ratio of the recurrence risk of SpA in first-degree relatives compared with the population prevalence of SpA. The λnon-HLA was obtained by similar calculations restricted to HLA-B27+ individuals.

Results: Most manifestations of SpA were more frequent among the 157 HLA-B27+ relatives of 83 probands than among their 111 HLA-B27- relatives. A diagnosis of SpA was made in 50 relatives of 31 (37%) probands. Recurrence was very similar between parents and siblings, without gender difference, resulting in overall recurrence risk of 12% in first-degree relatives and of 22.7% in HLA-B27+ relatives. The λ1 value was 40 and the λnon-HLA value was 6.5, very close to the λHLA value of 6.25 estimated from linkage study in SpA.

Conclusions: A similar recurrence risk of SpA was observed between parents and siblings, consistent with a model of inheritance with no dominance variance and without sex influence. The weight of the non-HLA genetic component was equivalent to that estimated for the HLA locus, and fitted a model of multiplicative interaction between HLA and non-HLA genetic components.

Footnotes

  • Competing interests: None declared.

  • Funding: This work was supported by grants from Schering-Plough (2001) and Programme Cohortes et Collections Biologiques from Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale (2002).

  • Ethics approval: Ethics approval was obtained.

This Article

  1. Abstract
  2. Full text
  3. PDF
  4. All versions of this article:
    1. ard.2008.089599v1
    2. 68/4/502 most recent

Responses

  1. Submit a response
  2. No responses published

Register for free content

The full back archive is now available for all BMJ Journals. Institutional subscribers may access the entire archive as part of their subscription. Personal subscribers will also have access to all content when logged in. Non-subscribers who register have free access to all articles published before 2006 right back to volume 1 issue 1. Register here to access the free archive of all BMJ Journals.

Don't forget to sign up for content alerts so you keep up to date with all the articles as they are published.