Jackson Heart Study (JHS)
What is the goal of the JHS?
The Jackson Heart Study (JHS) study is the largest investigation of causes of cardiovascular disease in African-Americans, involving more than 5,300 men and women in Jackson, Mississippi. The goal of the JHS is to investigate genetic and environmental factors to understand how African Americans are disproportionately affected by cardiovascular diseases, especially high blood pressure, coronary heart disease, heart failure, stroke, and peripheral arterial disease. The NHLBI and the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities co-sponsor this study.
A second goal of the JHS is to promote cardiovascular health through effective community outreach. The first step to reducing risk of heart disease or stroke is building knowledge at the community level about the risk factors of cardiovascular disease and about scientifically proven heart-healthy lifestyle changes that prevent these conditions. A third goal of the JHS is to design a program to increase the number of African-American health professionals. The JHS conducts college undergraduate and graduate-level training programs and high school science and math enrichment programs to prepare and encourage underrepresented minority students to pursue biomedical careers.
Through the integrated components of research, community outreach, and training, investigators with the JHS will gain critical knowledge about cardiovascular disease in African-Americans to improve the health of the local community and Nation.
- The JHS is the largest single-site investigation of cardiovascular disease among African-Americans ever undertaken.
- The study has observed how participants live and analyzed how their heart health relates to their environment.
- Additional features of the JHS include a community health awareness program and a training program for minority students in the health science field.
- JHS study findings have been presented in nearly 400 publications.
What are the key findings of the JHS?
Discoveries made by JHS researchers include a gene variant in African-Americans that doubles the risk of heart disease; the finding that even small spikes in blood pressure can lead to a higher risk of death; and a sickle cell trait linked to a higher risk of kidney disease. These findings could lead to new ways for researchers to treat heart disease in African Americans.
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How is the JHS conducted?
Participants were recruited from among African-American adults living in the urban and rural areas of three counties surrounding the Jackson, Mississippi, metropolitan area. Jackson is the capital of Mississippi, the state with the largest percentage (36.3 percent) of African-Americans in the U.S. Participants undergo exams, and major, abnormal clinical findings are reported to the participants and to their health care providers. Follow-up information on vital status, major illnesses or injuries, and hospitalizations to identify intervening clinical events is done annually by phone.
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It is the most sweeping—and significant—study ever of cardiovascular disease in African Americans. Now experts with the groundbreaking Jackson Heart Study (JHS) are taking stock of some of the many insights gleaned since the study began.
In the emerging world of personalized medicine, researchers are furiously looking for disease markers specific to minority populations, and already they have made some promising discoveries.The clues they are gathering, the scientists say, could lead to improved diagnosis and treatment of chronic diseases, such as asthma and heart disease, that dis...