Faroese people
SPCD is more common in the Faroe Islands than in other countries; at least one out of every 1000 inhabitants of the Faroes has the illness, while the numbers for other countries are one in every 100,000. Around 100 persons in the islands have been diagnosed, around one third of the whole population of 48,000 people have been screened for SPCD. Several young Faroese people and children have died a sudden death with cardiac arrest because of SPCD. Scientists believe that around 10% of the Faroese population are carriers of variants which cause SPCD. These people are not ill, but may have a lower amount of carnitine in their blood than non-carriers.