Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) Study

The following are examples of key ARIC findings:

• This was the first U.S. population-based study to establish carotid intima-media thickness (IMT) to be a marker of subclinical, that is having no detectable signs and symptoms, of atherosclerosis, which is associated with adverse cardiovascular disease outcomes. The study also documented that the considering carotid IMT can improve cardiovascular disease prognosis.

• The study provided prospective data on the relationship of cardiovascular disease in African Americans and novel risk factors, such as lipoprotein A levels, vitamin D levels, and fat distribution.

• The study offered information on novel risk factors for heart failure, allowing investigators to create a useful heart failure prediction model and a stroke risk prediction model, one of the few that included African Americans.

• ARIC documented for the first time the prevalence of a set of ideal cardiovascular disease health metrics and provided evidence that the number of health metrics relates to cardiovascular disease rates. The American Heart Association has since labeled this set of health metrics as Life’s Simple Seven. 

• The study played a major role in identifying PCSK9 gene mutations that determine low cholesterol levels and decreased coronary heart disease risk.

• ARIC found that high levels of inflammatory markers are associated with a higher risk of diabetes, shaped discovery that has shaped our current understanding of how inflammation causes diabetes.

• The study produced some of the first evidence that lifestyle factors contribute to the risk of venous thromboembolism, a blood clot that starts in a vein, offering possible keys to prevention.
   

The cohort component was created to build on results from the community surveillance component. The data were validated using standard methods involved in cohort studies that follow a group over a long period of time, and by providing additional information, such as risk factors and out-of-hospital medical care. The cohort study was initiated in 1985, and investigators recruited 15,792 black and white adults aged 45 to 64 years, who completed four clinic examinations, conducted three years apart, in 1987-1989, 1990-1992, 1993-1995, and 1996-1998. A fifth examination was conducted in 2011-2013. Follow-up conversations also occur semi-annually by telephone to maintain contact and to assess the health status of the cohort.