Cardiovascular risk factors among children of men with premature myocardial infarction.

THE INCREASED FREQUENCY of coronary heart disease (CHD) among relatives of affected patients suggests that familial factors are associated with the occurrence of occlusive coronary disease (1-3). Family studies among adults have also shown higher than expected levels of cholesterol, blood pressure, and cigarette smoking, all established risk factors for coronary heart disease (4-11), among relatives of patients affected by CHD (12). Further, results of studies of hypercholesterolemic children suggest an increased frequency of CHD among their adult relatives (13,14). Corroboration and extension of these findings is an important public health matter since it can provide further evidence that the prevention of CHD mortality and morbidity must involve the family as a whole, and in particular, that prevention should begin in childhood. In this report, we examine CHD risk factors among children of men with premature myocardial infarction