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Heritability of psychosis in Alzheimer disease.

Bacanu SA, Devlin B, Chowdari KV, DeKosky ST, Nimgaonkar VL, Sweet RA

Dept. of Psychiatry, Univ. of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, 3811 O'Hara Street, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA.

OBJECTIVE: The authors have previously demonstrated familial clustering of psychotic symptoms in late-onset Alzheimer disease (LOAD+P) and sought to estimate and explore the nature of the heritability of LOAD+P. METHODS: The heritability of LOAD+P, defined by single and multiple psychotic symptoms, was estimated with data from the National Institute of Mental Health AD Genetics Initiative. RESULTS: The estimated heritability for LOAD+P defined by multiple psychotic symptoms was 61%; for LOAD+P defined by any occurrence of psychotic symptoms, it was 30%. CONCLUSION: Multiplicity of symptoms may represent a useful means for defining a genetically determined LOAD+P phenotype.

Published 12 July 2005 in Am J Geriatr Psychiatry, 13(7): 624-7.
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