Abstract
The Rotterdam Study is a prospective cohort study ongoing since 1990 in the city of Rotterdam in The Netherlands. The study targets cardiovascular, endocrine, hepatic, neurological, ophthalmic, psychiatric, dermatological, otolaryngological, locomotor, and respiratory diseases. As of 2008, 14,926 subjects aged 45 years or over comprise the Rotterdam Study cohort. The findings of the Rotterdam Study have been presented in over 1200 research articles and reports (see www.erasmus-epidemiology.nl/rotterdamstudy). This article gives the rationale of the study and its design. It also presents a summary of the major findings and an update of the objectives and methods.
Highlights
We found that markers of generalized atherosclerosis in persons without a history of myocardial infarction or angina were associated with a higher risk of atrial fibrillation [41]
We studied the modification of magnesium, whole grain and a healthy diet score on fasting glucose and insulin by single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) related to fasting glucose and insulin as part of the CHARGE consortium [104,105,106]
As hormones have been hypothesized to play a role in age-related macular degeneration (AMD), we studied thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) and free thyroxine (FT4) [202]. 5573 participants from the Rotterdam Study were followed for an average period of 6.9 years during which 805 persons developed AMD
Summary
Research on the epidemiology of cardiovascular disease focuses on the etiology, prognosis, and prediction of cardiovascular disorders (including coronary heart disease, stroke, heart failure) diabetes mellitus and metabolic syndrome. We identified EN-RAGE as a novel biomarker for incidence of coronary heart disease, independent of established risk factors and inflammatory markers, such as C-reactive protein [56]. Multiple studies focused on the predictive value of noninvasive measures of atherosclerosis for risk of coronary heart disease. Genetic studies included candidate gene studies [67] and more recently genome-wide association studies of clinical disease and risk factor phenotypes. Low dietary carbohydrate intake and normal sleep duration were found to ameliorate cardiometabolic abnormalities conferred by common circadian-related genetic variants [107].In addition to nutrition, we investigated lifestyle factors and found that there is no association between positive psychological well-being and incidence of cardiovascular disease [108]. We did find an association between clinical heart failure and poor sleep quality over time, but did not find an association between cardiac dysfunction (measured by echocardiography) and sleep quality [109]
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