The family medical history tree

ONE PATH TO HEALTHY SELF-KNOWLEDGE

BY JUDY YOUNG

ITWASABEAUTIFULSPRING MORNINGIN BOSTON, AND THEBRIGHTSUNSTREAMING THROUGHTHEBUDDINGTREES COULDN’TDISPELTHEFEAR

INMYUNCLE’SFACE. MY

NEWBORNCOUSINHADJUST

BEENDIAGNOSEDWITHA

HEARTCONDITION.

For the moment, how and why this happened mattered as much to him as what could be done to help his daughter. As I considered how I might offer some measure of comfort, I heard my uncle say the word congenital, and I wondered who among our relatives might have had a similar problem. At the time, neither of us knew about the condition a number of my aunt’s relatives had inherited for five generations.

While there are no guarantees concerning health or disease, some knowledge of your family’s medical history is important and, potentially, lifesaving. Dr. Peter H. Jones, a physician-scientist affiliated with the Methodist DeBakey Heart Center, advises, “Initially, at least, you can begin a family medical history tree by summarizing the diseases, symptoms, and/or conditions of your immediate family, and then interviewing your extended family (e.g., aunts, uncles, cousins, etc.) to determine the medical histories of three to four generations.

In general, categories of information should include name; relationship of the relative to you; dates of birth and death; past/present health problems and whether they were inherited or developed over time;

age at, and year of, diagnosis; and age at, and cause of death.”

According to Jones, it also is important to note mental illness, allergies and environmental risk factors, in addition to physiological disease. “Subsequently, this collective medical history can be updated annually, distributed to everyone in the family, and forwarded by each relative to his or her physicians,” Jones concluded.

This year, consider doing a little research into your family’s past in order to pass on a lasting gift to those you love. By assembling an accurate and comprehensive family medical history tree, you can assist your relatives and their physicians in predicting, identifying and treating health risks and hereditary conditions — especially among younger family members. Your physician can assist you in preparing a list of the most important data to collect and provide counsel regarding the appropriateness of genetic testing to identify inherited conditions.

By the way, my cousin’s congenital heart condition was corrected by surgery and she is now 25. She and her husband are planning a family, and I believe you know what I plan to suggest to them in the very near future.

No more excuses. Become a better manager of your own health and that of your family with this basic but important tool.

For the 16th consecutive

year, The Methodist Hospital is ranked among the country’s top centers in U.S.News & World Report’s 2006 annual guide to “America’s Best Hospitals.” The magazine ranked the country’s top 50 hospitals in 17 specialties based on a combination of clinical data, number of discharges and reputation.

Neurology/neurosurgery 10 Urology 16 Ear, nose and throat 16 Psychiatry 17 Ophthalmology* 15 Gynecology 47

*Baylor College of Medicine’s Cullen Eye Institute housed at The Methodist Hospital

FAMILY MEDICAL HISTORY TREE