Over the past five years, the pace of identification of genetic loci underlying susceptibility to common diseases has increased rapidly, leading to interest in how this information might best be used to improve personal and public health. One potential application is the use of genetic information to help predict susceptibility to disease in initially healthy people, so as to focus preventive interventions on those at the highest risk of future disease. This targeted approach to prevention is exemplified by the established use of risk equations based on non-genetic variables to estimate risk of coronary heart disease and guide blood pressure lowering and cholesterol lowering treatment.3 4 This approach to the prevention of vascular disease, for which diabetes is a major risk factor, will become more systematic in the next two years, through the Department of Health’s vascular health check scheme (www.dh.gov.uk/en/Publicationsandstatistics/Publications/PublicationsPolicyAndGuidance/DH_083822).
