Familial Hypercholesterolemia Common Among Those With French Canadian Ancestry
Dr. Dervilla McCann notes a lack of awareness of this genetic condition at every level of the medical community.
An article in the Lewiston Sun Journal states that the condition is ten times more common among those with French Canadian ancestry than it is in the general population. According to Cat Davis Ahmed, vice president of policy and outreach at the FH Foundation, significant gains have been made in treating this condition once it is identified.
Given the many pockets of French ancestry persons in Maine, clinicians would be well advised to keep an eye out for this condition, since individuals who get copies of the gene from both parents may well begin to develop heart disease in childhood.
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