MedWire News: The risk of schizophrenia appears to be increased in the offspring of fathers aged 55 years and above, potentially due to chromosomal aberrations and mutations of the aging germline, argue US researchers.

There have been several investigations into the impact of parental age on the risk of schizophrenia, with increasing emphasis on paternal age and the risk among both male and female offspring.

To provide more comprehensive evidence, Edwin Fuller Torrey, from the Stanley Medical Research Institute in Chevy Chase, Maryland, and colleagues examined data on 25,025 offspring from the Collaborative Perinatal Project, including 168 cases of psychosis and 88 cases of narrowly defined schizophrenia.

In addition, the team performed a meta-analysis of the current and nine other studies for which comparable data was available.

The average paternal age for cases was 29.6 years versus 28.9 years for controls, a non-significant difference, the team reports in the journal Schizophrenia Research. Dividing paternal age into ≥35 years, ≥40 years, and ≥45 years did not reveal any significant differences between cases and controls. There were also no significant associations with maternal age.

However, the meta-analysis revealed that paternal age ≥35 years, ≥45 years, and ≥55 years was associated with odds ratios of an offspring with schizophrenia of 1.28, 1.38, and 2.22, respectively, compared with a paternal age of less than 35 years. There were no associations with maternal age.

The researchers conclude: “The finding that men in the oldest age groups have an increased risk of fathering a child who will develop schizophrenia is consistent with studies showing paternal age as a risk factor for many diseases in the offspring.”

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