Framingham Heart Study (FSH)

Since our beginning in 1948, the Framingham Heart Study, under the direction of the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI), formerly known as the National Heart Institute, has been committed to identifying the common factors or characteris d to identifying the common factors or characteristics that contribute to cardiovascular disease (CVD). We have followed CVD development over a long period of time in three generations of participants. Since 1971, the Boston University School of Medicine has served as NHLBI contractor and academic partner for the study. Over the years, careful monitoring of the Framingham Study population has led to the identification of major CVD risk factors, as well as valuable information on the effects of these factors such as blood pressure, blood triglyceride and cholesterol levels, age, gender, and psychosocial issues. Risk factors for other physiological conditions such as dementia have been and continue to be investigated. In addition, the relationships between physical traits and genetic patterns are being studied. We are proud that what began decades ago still is going strong today. We could not have succeeded without the dedication of the thousands of participants in our Study and our employees. Since our beginning in 1948, the Framingham Heart Study, under the direction of the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI), formerly known as the National Heart Institute, has been committed to identifying common factors or characteristics that contribute to cardiovascular disease (CVD). We have closely followed the development of these diseases over a long period of time through three generations of participants. Our study began in 1948, recruiting the original cohort of 5,209 men and women from Framingham, ages 30 to 62, who had not developed symptoms of cardiovascular disease or suffered a heart attack or stroke. Since then, the study has added children from the Offspring Cohort in 1971; the multicultural Omni cohort in 1994; the Third Generation of the original cohort in 2002; a group of spouses of the Offspring in 2003; and a second Omni cohort was added in 2003. Over the years, careful monitoring of our participants has led to the identification of major risk factors for cardiovascular disease, as well as valuable information on the effects of these risks, such as blood pressure, cholesterol and triglyceride levels, age, sex and psychosocial traits. Risk factors for other physiological conditions, such as dementia, have also been and continue to be studied. In addition, the relationships between physical characteristics and genetic patterns are being studied. We are proud that what started decades ago is still as relevant today. Without the dedication of the thousands of participants in our studio and our employees, we would not have been able to achieve such success. Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of serious illness and death in the United States. In 1948, the Framingham Heart Study—under the direction of the National Institutes of Health (now known as the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute or NHLBI)—embarked on an ambitious health research project. At the time, little was known about the general causes of heart disease and stroke, but deaths from these diseases had been rising steadily since the turn of the century and had become an American epidemic. The Framingham Heart Study became a collaborative project of the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute and Boston University. ...view more