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Prevalence of heterozygotes for hemochromatosis in the white population of the United States.

Publication ,  Journal Article
McLaren, CE; Gordeuk, VR; Looker, AC; Hasselblad, V; Edwards, CQ; Griffen, LM; Kushner, JP; Brittenham, GM
Published in: Blood
September 1, 1995

In previous studies, the prevalence of HLA-linked hemochromatosis, thought to be the most common genetic illness in whites, has been estimated by identifying homozygotes in the population. Because not all homozygotes express the disease phenotypically, the accuracy of these estimates is uncertain. We analyzed the distribution of transferrin saturation values in the second National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey to estimate the prevalence of hemochromatosis heterozygotes in the US population. After removing values for possible homozygotes, two populations were present (P < .01 for each gender). When weighted to reflect the US adult white male population as a whole, a proportion of 850 per 1,000 (95% confidence interval, 0.81 to 0.89) were included in a population with a lower mean saturation of 29.7% (29.1% to 30.3%), whereas 150 per 1,000 (0.11 to 0.19) comprised a population with a higher mean saturation of 47.0% (45.1% to 49.0%). Similar results were found for the female population. The gene frequencies were estimated to be 0.081 from the male population and 0.070 from the female population corresponding to prevalences of homozygotes of 6.6 and 4.8 per 1,000, respectively. Our results confirm that the gene for hemochromatosis is common.

Duke Scholars

Published In

Blood

ISSN

0006-4971

Publication Date

September 1, 1995

Volume

86

Issue

5

Start / End Page

2021 / 2027

Location

United States

Related Subject Headings

  • White People
  • United States
  • Transferrin
  • Sex Characteristics
  • Prevalence
  • Middle Aged
  • Male
  • Iron
  • Infant
  • Immunology
 

Citation

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McLaren, C. E., Gordeuk, V. R., Looker, A. C., Hasselblad, V., Edwards, C. Q., Griffen, L. M., … Brittenham, G. M. (1995). Prevalence of heterozygotes for hemochromatosis in the white population of the United States. Blood, 86(5), 2021–2027.
McLaren, C. E., V. R. Gordeuk, A. C. Looker, V. Hasselblad, C. Q. Edwards, L. M. Griffen, J. P. Kushner, and G. M. Brittenham. “Prevalence of heterozygotes for hemochromatosis in the white population of the United States.Blood 86, no. 5 (September 1, 1995): 2021–27.
McLaren CE, Gordeuk VR, Looker AC, Hasselblad V, Edwards CQ, Griffen LM, et al. Prevalence of heterozygotes for hemochromatosis in the white population of the United States. Blood. 1995 Sep 1;86(5):2021–7.
McLaren, C. E., et al. “Prevalence of heterozygotes for hemochromatosis in the white population of the United States.Blood, vol. 86, no. 5, Sept. 1995, pp. 2021–27.
McLaren CE, Gordeuk VR, Looker AC, Hasselblad V, Edwards CQ, Griffen LM, Kushner JP, Brittenham GM. Prevalence of heterozygotes for hemochromatosis in the white population of the United States. Blood. 1995 Sep 1;86(5):2021–2027.

Published In

Blood

ISSN

0006-4971

Publication Date

September 1, 1995

Volume

86

Issue

5

Start / End Page

2021 / 2027

Location

United States

Related Subject Headings

  • White People
  • United States
  • Transferrin
  • Sex Characteristics
  • Prevalence
  • Middle Aged
  • Male
  • Iron
  • Infant
  • Immunology