Frequencies of Atypical Serum Cholinesterase in a Mixed Population of Northeastern Brazil

Abstract
Frequencies of the CHEI*A allele were estimated in 84 Whites and 772 Negroids from a random sample of Salvador, Bahia. The overall frequency of this gene in Negroids was estimated as 0.842 .+-. 0.233%. This indicates that this sample presents around 50 .+-. 17% of White admixture and that the estimate of the risk of developing prolonged apnea in individuals submitted to suxamethonium is around 0.035%, that is about 1 out of 2900.