Multifactorial inheritance

eg some forms of cancer, cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes

 

Figure 6

Cardiovascular disease (CVD): multifactorial inheritance

Figure 6

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  1. Multifactorial inheritance, also called complex inheritance, can be attributed to a combination of genetic
    (a single gene or multiple genes), environmental, and lifestyle factors.
  2. The genetic contribution is susceptibility.
  3. The number of necessary factors, and the impact those factors will have on the presence or severity of a condition will vary for different conditions and different individuals.
  4. Often when there are multiple susceptibility genes involved, there is an additive effect on the outcome.
  5. Early onset of conditions such as cancer, cardiovascular disease or type 2 diabetes may be indicative of multifactorial inheritance within a family.
  6. This type of inheritance does not follow a characteristic pedigree pattern but may look like autosomal dominant inheritance with incomplete penetrance.
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Rare conditions

  1. While individuals with rare conditions do not commonly present to GPs, collectively there are probably about 1.2 million Australians who have a rare condition.
  2. GPs may be the first point of call and it is acknowledged that management can be challenging.
  3. Individuals and their families have similar experiences despite their different diagnoses and GPs are well placed to help with these problems.
  4. The patient and their family as well as support groups can be an important source of information for GPs about the specific condition.
  5. Peer support can be helpful for individuals when a support group is not available.
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