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Finding
Clues to Rheumatic Diseases
(HealthScoutNews) -- Four hundred families with twins or pairs
of close brothers or sisters are being sought to take part in
a study examining the causes of rheumatic diseases.
Specifically, the study by the
U.S. National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences is looking
for volunteer families in which one twin or one of a pair of close
siblings has rheumatoid arthritis, polyarticular juvenile rheumatoid
arthritis, lupus, systemic sclerosis or idiopathic inflammatory
myopathy.
The other same-gender twin or sibling
must be free of these diseases. Both children and adults are eligible
to take part in the study, along with their parents.
The researchers note that, even
in identical twins, the chances are more than 50 percent that
one twin will have a rheumatic disease and the other will not.
That leads scientists to suspect
that a combination of genetic variations and environmental exposures
may be involved in the development of these rheumatic diseases.
This study will examine a number
of environmental exposures such as drugs, vaccines, bacteria,
viruses, dietary supplements, stress, occupational exposure and
ultraviolet light.
Study volunteers will be followed
for five years and be required to give blood and urine samples
that the researchers will use to test for environmental exposures
and minor gene variations that may increase susceptibility to
rheumatic diseases.
To quality for the study, brother
and sister pairs must be within 47 months of age of each other.
For more about the study, you can call 1-800-411-1222 (TTY: 1-866-411-1010)
or you can go to this Web
site.
More information
Here's where you can learn more
about rheumatic
diseases.
Reference
Source 101
For
more information on how to prevent other diseases, use
PreventDisease.com's "Quick
Prevention Resources".
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