Framingham Heart Study
Long-term cohort study that defined cardiovascular risk factors.
Last updated
Residents of Framingham, Massachusetts, have been part of a long-running cardiovascular cohort study that continues today.[1] The investigation enrolled 5,209 adults from the town in 1948, and currently includes members from a third generation of families.[1]
Quick Facts
- Start year
- 1948
- Initial participants
- 5,209
- Location
- Framingham, Massachusetts
- First director
- Thomas Royle Dawber (1949–1966)
- Sponsoring institutions
- National Heart
- Lung
- and Blood Institute; Boston University (since 1971)
- Number of published papers
- Over 3,000
Facts from the source article.
Key facts and history
The study had been intended to last 20 years, but interest grew due to Dawber's efforts.[2] The U.S. Congress authorized the study in 1948, and several towns were evaluated as potential sites.[2] Only Framingham, Massachusetts, and Paintsville, Kentucky, remained as candidates at the end of the selection process.[2] Because Framingham's inhabitants displayed greater enthusiasm for cardiac research, that city was selected over Paintsville.[2]
From 1949 through 1966, Thomas Royle Dawber served as the study's director.[2] After the project's initial difficulties, Dawber was named chief epidemiologist soon after it began.[2] Epidemiological knowledge about hypertensive or arteriosclerotic cardiovascular disease was virtually nonexistent before this research.[1]
What the research sources say
In the 1950s, it was believed that atherosclerosis and arteriosclerosis were normal parts of aging.[3] The Framingham Heart Study, along with other large studies, showed that healthy diet, not being overweight, and regular exercise are important for health.[4] It also confirmed that cigarette smoking is a highly significant factor in the development of heart disease.[4] Physicians had minimal understanding of how to prevent heart disease prior to this investigation.[3]
During the 1950s, hypertension and high serum cholesterol were considered typical age-related changes.[3] Over time, researchers identified additional risk factors including homocysteine.[3]
References
- Wikipedia, "Framingham Heart Study" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "The Framingham Heart Study and the epidemiology of cardiovascular disease: a historical perspective", Lancet, 2013, p. 999–1008; Thomas R. Dawber, M.D., Gilcin F. Meadors, M.D., M.P.H., and Felix E. Moore Jr., National Heart Institute, National Institutes of Health, Public Health Service, (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Framingham Heart Study" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Richmond, "Obituary: Thomas Royle Dawber", BMJ, 2006, p. 122 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Framingham Heart Study" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Kannel WB, "Some lessons in cardiovascular epidemiology from Framingham", Am J Cardiol, Feb 1976, p. 269–82; "Applicability of cholesterol-lowering primary prevention trials to a general population: the Framingham Heart Study", Arch Intern Med, Apr 2001, p. 949–54; "Homocysteine and heart failure: a review of investigations from the Framingham Heart Study", Clin Chem Lab Med, 2005, p. 987–92; "Cardiovascular risk factors. Insights from Framingham Heart Study", Rev Esp Cardiol, Mar 2008, p. 299–310; "Advances in Genetics", 2008, p en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Framingham Heart Study" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Nutritional research within the Framingham Heart Study. Millen BE, Quatromoni PA. J Nutr Health Aging. 2001;5(3):139-43.; Women and cardiovascular disease: contributions from the Framingham Heart Study. Murabito JM. J Am Med Women's Assoc. 1995 Mar-Apr;50(2):35-9.; The health risks of smoking. The Framingham Study: 34 years of follow-up. Freund KM, Belanger AJ, D'Agostino RB, Kannel WB. Ann Epidemiol. 1993 Jul;3(4):417-24.; Mortality in relation to smoking: 50 years' observations on male British doctors. Doll R, Peto R, Boreham J en.wikipedia.org
Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Framingham Heart Study (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.
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Sources
Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.
- Wikipedia: Framingham Heart Study (CC BY-SA 4.0).
- Word definitions: the , each quoted from its Wikipedia article.
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