The relationship of reported parental history to the incidence of coronary heart disease in the Western Collaborative Group Study.

The relationship of a reported parental history of coronary heart disease (CHD) to the incidence of CHD was determined in this prospective study of CHD in an intake population of 39-59-year old men. Reported parental history of CHD was found to be associated with level of schooling, the type A behavior pattern, serum cholesterol and beta/alpha lipoprotein ratio. Men with reported parental history had an increased incidence of angina pectoris in both age defined by symptomatic myocardial infarction and sudden coronary death. Adjustment then was made simultaneously for the confounding effects of the risk factors found to be associated with the prevalence of parental history of CHD. After such adjustment a reported parental history of CHD was still found to have a significant association (p = 0.01) with the combined incidence of symptomatic myocardial infarction and angina pectoris in subjects under 50 years of age.