The project, the Framingham Heart Study, conducted by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) of the National Institutes of Health, has provided surveillance of the cardiac health of a randomly selected sample of men and women from Framingham, Mass. (see accompanying story). Its prospective nature has made it possible to define factors that may eventually lead to cardiovascular disease and, as a result, has triggered national health trends geared to intervene and reduce risk.
As the data-collecting phase of the study draws to a close (funding is expected to expire in 1992), a look back over the past several decades reveals a body of valuable information that has had significant impact in cardiovascular disease research.
"The Framingham Heart Study was created to study the incidence of coronary heart disease and the factors related to its development," explains William B. Kannel, former study director and currently professor of medicine ...
