The impact of race as a risk factor for symptom severity and age at diagnosis of uterine leiomyomata among affected sisters

OBJECTIVE: The objective of the study was to identify risk factors for uterine leiomyomata (UL) in a racially diverse population of women with a family history of UL, and to evaluate their contribution to disease severity and age at diagnosis. STUDY DESIGN: We collected and analyzed epidemiologic data from 285 sister pairs diagnosed with UL. Risk factors for UL-related outcomes were compared among black (n = 73) and white (n = 212) sister pairs using univariate and multivariate regression models. RESULTS: Black women reported an average age at diagnosis of 5.3 years younger (SE, 1.1; P < .001) and were more likely to report severe disease (odds ratio, 5.22; 95% confidence interval, 1.99-13.7, P <.001) than white women of similar socioeconomic status. CONCLUSION: Self-reported race is a significant factor in the severity of UL among women with a family history of UL. Differences in disease presentation between races likely reflect underlying genetic heterogeneity. The affected sister-pair study design can address both epidemiological and genetic hypotheses about UL.