Parental similarity in psychiatric disorders inflates heritability estimates by 12.5%
A Danish population-based cohort study of over 4.2 million residents and 549,541 parental couples examined correlations between parents for psychiatric and somatic disorders. The study reported substantial parental correlation for psychiatric disorders overall (r=0.28), highest for schizophrenia (r=0.38), and found this nonrandom mating pattern inflated the simulated prevalence of any psychiatric disorder by 1.8% and family-based heritability estimates by 12.5%. The authors state that partner similarity, whether from assortative mating or other mechanisms, contributes meaningfully to familial clustering of psychiatric disease risk.
Most relevant for: Researchers and clinicians involved in family-based heritability studies and genetic risk assessment for psychiatric disorders.
Read the original at JAMA PsychiatrySummary written by an AI model from the source text and dated by the source's publication date. Check the original before acting on it. How MedFollow selects and summarizes updates.
Informational only. Not medical advice. Not a substitute for clinical judgment. Always consult current guidelines and your own clinical judgment.
Specialties
More psychiatry updates
- Caring Letters Not Linked to Lower Suicide Mortality in VeteransOct 14, 2026
- US benzodiazepine dispensing fell 26.7% from 2013 to 2024Sep 30, 2026
- Class II recall: Safecor Health, LLC: Fluphenazine HCl Elixir, USP, 5 mg per 1 mL, Delivers: 10 mL, Oral Elixir, PAI, Sep 23, 2026
- Class II recall: Safecor Health, LLC: Fluphenazine HCl Elixir, USP, 5 mg per 10 mL, Delivers: 10 mL, Oral Elixir, PAI,Sep 23, 2026
- Class II recall: Safecor Health, LLC: Fluphenazine HCl Elixir, USP, 10 mg per 2 mL, Delivers: 10 mL, Oral Elixir, PAI,Sep 23, 2026