Based on a Danish birth cohort (n=9182), a high risk group of sons of alcoholic fathers (HR, n=223) and a low risk group of sons without parental alcoholism (LR, n=106) has been followed prospectively from pregnancy to age 40.
The HR sons are characterized by a high prevalence of alcohol dependence (31%) and a high rate of remission (55%).
Most powerful predictors for alcohol dependence in adulthood are: low birth weight, ADHD, conduct disorder, low cognitive efficiency and high behavioural dyscontrol in childhood.
A 50 year follow-up examination of the sample, including DNA-testing, is planned in the nearest future.
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