Objectives

Long-term, multigenerational study designed to identify genetic and environmental factors influencing the development of cardiovascular and other diseases.

Background

The Framingham Study began in 1948 under the U.S. Public Health Service and was transferred under the direct operations of the new National Heart Institute, NIH, in 1949. Participants were sampled from Framingham, Massachusetts, including both men and women. This was the first prospective study of cardiovascular disease and identified the concept of risk factors and their joint effects. Enrollment of the offspring and spouses of the original cohort began in 1971 as a result of the aging of the original cohort and to assess familial aggregation and heritability of vascular risk factors and their sequelae. To expand on identifying genetic and environmental risk factors related to the development of cardiovascular, lung, and blood diseases, enrollment in a third generation was initiated in 2002 composed of participants with at least one parent in the Offspring cohort. Composed primarily of African American, Asian and Hispanics, the Omni 1 cohort began enrolling participants in 1994 to reflect the changing race and ethnic composition of the community. A second Omni cohort, Omni 2 began enrollment in 2003 with the objective of assembling a minority cohort of approximately 10% of the Framingham third generation cohort. The Omni 2 cohort is composed of participants both related and unrelated to the Omni 1 group.

Participants

Original Framingham cohort, 5209 participants, 55% female, 26-66 years of age at enrollment. Framingham Offspring (second generation cohort), 5124 participants, 52% female, 5-70 years of age at enrollment. Framingham generation 3 cohort, 4095 participants, 53% female, 19-72 years of age at enrollment. Omni 1 cohort, 507 participants, 58% female, 36% black, 23% Asian, 40% Hispanic, 35-75 years of age at enrollment. Omni 2 cohort, 410 participants, 57% female, 20% African American, 25% Asian, 41% Hispanic, 19-75 years of age at enrollment.

Disease Classification

Continuous surveillance for the following events in the cohort: myocardial infarction, silent or unrecognized myocardial infarction, angina, coronary insufficiency, coranary revascularization, atrial fibrillation, coronary heart disease death, transient ischemic attack, ischemic stroke, hemorrhagic stroke, fatal stroke, congestive heart failure, intermittent claudication.

Design

Longitudinal, population based, multi-generational cohort study

Publications

https://www.framinghamheartstudy.org/fhs-bibliography/index.php