Framingham Heart Study
High blood pressure, high cholesterol, smoking, and inactivity can lead to heart disease. We take this understanding for granted, but in fact much of it grew out of a single remarkable initiative: the Framingham Heart Study, launched in 1948.
This joint project of the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute and Boston University began with 5,209 individuals between the ages of 30 and 62 from Framingham, Mass., who engaged in extensive physical examinations and lifestyle interviews that yielded much of what we know today about cardiovascular disease. Today, the study is tracking a third generation of participants and expanding its reach to learn how aging affects the heart and other organs, from the brain to the liver.
FHS is widely viewed as the gold standard for longitudinal research. It has evolved into a global network of collaborative studies yielding thousands of academic articles covering a wide range of diseases, from diabetes and cancer to Alzheimer’s disease. Countless lives have been saved by medical breakthroughs based on the study’s data. Support for this iconic study helps BU Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine remain a leader in this groundbreaking quest.
To learn how you can help, please contact the BU Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine Development team.