RESUMO
The aim of this study was to investigate the distribution of specific phenotypes in patients with lung diseases as well as their eventual association with the risk of developing lung diseases. For this purpose 2777 patients with lung diseases and 2778 healthy individuals from all over Kosova were examined for the appearance of the following selected phenotypes: ear lobe free (ELF)/ear lobe attached, normal chin (NC)/cleft chin, tongue roller (TR)/non roller, hand clasping right thumb over (HC)/hand clasping left thumb over, righthanded (RH)/lefthanded. In addition, the blood group from ABO system and the presence or absence of the Rhesus factor asphenotypical markers were observed. The results obtained show significant differences between control and lung disease patients for NC (p ≤ 0.05) and TR (p ≤ 0.005) as well as for blood groups AB (p ≤ 0.05) and O (p ≤ 0.005). These results point to eventually increased levels of genetic load as a result of the increased homozygosity in some gene loci causing an increased frequency of some recessive phenotypes in patients with lung diseases. Together with the specific associations observed, these preliminary findings could serve as a basis for further in depth investigations with respect to the types of lung diseases, occupational exposure and dietary habits, and thus is expected to contribute to an understanding of predispositions and susceptibility to lung diseases.