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Conduct disorder and affective disorder among the offspring of patients with Huntington's Disease

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  09 July 2009

Susan E. Folstein ,
Mary Lousie Franz ,
Barbara A. Jensen ,
Gary A. Chase  and
Marshal F. Folstein
Susan E. Folstein*
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
Mary Lousie Franz
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
Barbara A. Jensen
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
Gary A. Chase
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
Marshal F. Folstein
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
*
1 Address for correspondence: Dr Susan E. Folstein, Osler 320, The Johns Hopkins Hospital, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA.
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Synopsis

The rate of occurrence of conduct disorder and affective illness was studied for a sample of 112 offspring of 34 Huntington's Disease (HD) patients. Psychiatric disorder in the offspring was assessed as a function of: (1) age of the parent at the onset of symptoms of HD; (2) family disorganization; and (3) psychiatric disorder in either parent. The findings indicated an increased frequency of conduct disorder in disrupted families, most especially in those where the HD parent had an early onset of symptoms and the non-HD parent showed psychiatric disorder. Affective disorder in the offspring was most strongly associated with the presence of similar symptoms in the HD parent. Affective disorder, but not conduct disorder, may be an early manifestation of the HD gene. The implication of these findings for genetic counselling is discussed.

Type
Research Article
Information
Psychological Medicine , Volume 13 , Issue 1 , February 1983 , pp. 45 - 52
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1983

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