Family
genotype
data, though difficult to collect, often provide a more effective way of testing markers for association with disease status than case-control data. Case-control data can uncover significant associations between markers and a disease that could be caused by
factors
other than
linkage
, such as
population
structure. Analyzing family data by using the
SAS FAMILY
procedure ensures that any significant associations found between a marker and disease status are due to linkage between the marker and disease
loci
. This is accomplished by using the transmission/disequilibrium test (
TDT
) and several variations of it that can accommodate different types of family data.
The
TDT
test is selected by default. If
none
of the tests are specified,
all
are performed.