The NAS-NRC Twin Registry of WWII Military Veteran Twins

The NAS-NRC Twin Registry is one of the oldest, national population based-twin registries in the United States. It consists of 15,924 white male twin pairs born in the years 1917–1927 (inclusive) both of whom served in the armed forces. The registry, which has been in operation more than 30 years, has collected data from a variety of sources. Records-based, computerized data have come largely from the Department of Veterans Affairs, and there have been three major epidemiologic questionnaires, undertaken roughly every 15 years. Classic twin studies on a variety of medical conditions were the early focus of the registry, which now has a strong focus on chronic disease epidemiology. Work on a DNA specimen bank has been proceeding slowly, but is now a top priority, due to the increasing force of mortality in this twin cohort.