Objectives: There are few studies of familial aggregation of blood pressure in African populations. This study was undertaken to provide estimates of heritability for four blood pressure phenotypes: systolic blood pressure (SBP), diastolic blood pressure (DBP), mean arterial pressure (MAP) and pulse pressure.
Methods: A population-based sample of 528 pedigrees or extended families, comprising 1825 measured individuals, was studied in a poor urban community in Ibadan, Nigeria.
Results: The mean SBP was 121.7 (SD 22.6) mmHg for men and 120.7 (SD 26.8) mmHg for women, while the mean DBP was 74.6 (SD 14.1) mmHg for men and 75.5 (SD 15.2) mm Hg for women. The study sample was lean [mean body mass index (BMI) approximately 21 kg/m2]. Maximum-likelihood heritability estimates were obtained under a polygenic model with simultaneous estimation of household effects using a variance components method, as implemented in the SOLAR software package. Heritability estimates of the traits were 34% for SBP, 29% for DBP, 36% for MAP and 13% for pulse pressure. Household effects were statistically significant for DBP (7.1%) and MAP (4.5%). Measured covariates (age, sex and BMI) accounted for 25, 24, 26 and 16% of the total variance, respectively, for SBP, DBP, MAP and pulse pressure.
Conclusions: These figures suggest that, similar to that reported in other populations, blood pressure is a heritable trait. Studies similar to this are needed to describe the familial aggregation of other complex traits in sub-Saharan African populations and to serve as a prelude to the identification of susceptibility genes involved in the pathophysiology of common complex diseases, including blood pressure and hypertension.