It is important for parents to learn as much as they can about their family health history in order to have a complete record for your child throughout his or her life.
Family Health History Plays a Major Role In:
- Identifying familial and hereditary disorders
- Determining inheritance patterns and recurrence risks for known and suspected genetic disorders
- Identifying those at risk for a genetic disorder
- Identifying those not at risk for a genetic disorder
- Providing information necessary for appropriate genetic counseling
- Providing an important adjunct to patient management of all childhood diseases, such as
growth problems and
asthma
Ideally a family history is recorded at your child first visit to the pediatrician, as well as a mother’s first prenatal visit. A family history should also be updated yearly with each
well-child visit.
Questions Your Pediatrician May Ask About Family History:
- Are there any health problems that are known to run in your family, or that close relatives have been told are genetic? If so, what are these conditions?
- Is there anyone in the family who had cancer, heart disease, or other adult-onset health problem at an early age, such as between 20 and 50?
- Does/did anyone in the family have
intellectual disability,
learning problems, or have to go to a special school?
- Have there been any early deaths in the family, including stillbirths, infant deaths, multiple miscarriages, or shortened life span?
-
What is your ethnic background? Some genetic conditions are more common in certain geographic, ethnic, and racial groups.
- Have any relatives had extreme or unexpected reactions to medications or therapy?
Barriers to Collecting a Family History
According to a survey by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, although 96.3% of Americans considered knowledge of family history important to their personal health, only about 30% have ever tried to actively gather and organize their families’ health histories.
Barriers for families to collecting a family history include:
- Lack of time
- Incomplete records
- Inaccessible family members
-
Adoption
- Incorrect or vague diagnoses
- Denial or guilt
- Family members not talking to each other
- Blame
- Multiple family members who care for a child
- Fear of discrimination and stigmatization
Additional Resources