Multivariate genetic analysis of the causes of temperance board registrations In all Swedish male - female twin pairs born 1926 - 1949

Conclusions The three causes for alcohol registration in Sweden largely reflect the same genetic and environmental risk factors. Estimated heritabilities were similar for the three forms of registration. However, specific genetic risk factors exist for drink-driving and specific familial -environmental risk factors for alcohol-related crime.Genetic factors are somewhat less important and familial -environmental factors more important for public drunkenness than for drink-driving and alcohol related crime. We have previously examined temperance board registration in all male-male twin pairs born in Sweden from 1902 to 1949 and found that the risk for any temperance board registration was substantially influenced by both genetic and environmental factors (Kendler et al, 1997). Three main causes of registration were established by Swedish authorities: drunkenness, driving under the influence of alcohol and committing an alcohol-related crime. In treating temperance board registration as a single variable, our previous analyses produced results 'averaged' over these potentially heterogeneous causes for registration. We investigate three issues in this study. Whether the aetiological importance of genetic and familial-environmental factors differs for the three causes of registration; whether the same general genetic and environmental factors lead to an increased risk for these three causes of registration, or whether there are specific genetic andlor environmental factors that independently influence the liability to each separate form of alcoholrelated problems; to what extent genetic v. environmental factors are responsible for the observed correlation in this population for the three causes of registration.