Polygenic scores improved prediction most for metabolic and heart disease
On 27 September 2026 a medRxiv preprint reported that polygenic risk scores most improved prediction for metabolic, cardiovascular, autoimmune and neurological diseases, while offering little benefit for genitourinary and respiratory conditions. Usoltsev et al. trained and tested models covering 150 diseases plus all‑cause mortality using data from 900,000 participants in the UK Biobank and FinnGen. The manuscript has not undergone peer review. For atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease, the genetic score increased the size of the clinically defined high‑risk group by 40 percent; the reclassified individuals experienced a 4.9‑fold higher incidence during follow‑up compared with those who remained low‑risk.
Clinicians and biobank researchers can see which conditions benefit most from polygenic scores, although the findings have not yet been peer reviewed.
Written by the Genomes desk from the primary source cited and linked above and checked against it. Research use only; not medical advice. Corrections: [email protected].