Bimodality in age of onset of psoriasis, in both patients and their relatives

The ages at onset of 245 female and 211 male psoriasis (Ps) patients were recorded. The distribution of age of onset in both sexes is bimodal, with separation at the age of 40 years into an early-onset group and a late-onset group. These distributions were normal (Gaussian) with equal variances. These data are compatible with the hypothesis that there are two genotypes for Ps. Further evidence for this hypothesis is provided by the relationship between age of onset and number of affected relatives. The latter, corrected for age at time of study, demonstrates a mixture of two negative binomial distributions, also with likely separation at the age of 40 years. The age distribution of Ps patients reflects the bimodality of age of onset, but with larger means and variances.