Whole Genome Association Study of Visceral Adiposity in the HABC Study

The Health Aging and Body Composition (Health ABC) Study is a NIA-sponsored cohort study of the factors that contribute to

incident disability and the decline in function of healthier older persons, with a particular emphasis on changes in body composition

in old age. Between 4/15/97 and 6/5/98 the Health ABC study has recruited 3,075 70-79 year old community-dwelling adults

(41% African-American), who were initially free of mobility and activities of daily living disability. The key components of

Health ABC include a baseline exam, annual follow-up clinical exams, and phone contacts every 6 months to identify major health

events and document functional status between clinic visits.

The core yearly examination for HEALTH ABC includes measurement of body composition by dual energy x-ray absorptio-metry (DXA),

walking ability, strength, an interview that includes self-report of limitations, and a medication survey, weight. At baseline, visceral

adiposity was measured by computerized tomography (CT). Provision has been made for banking of blood specimens and extracted DNA

(HealthABC repository). The overall goal of this project is to identify genetic determinants of visceral adiposity. Genetic samples

from 2932 unrelated participants were evaluated with a genome-wide scan.]]>
Health ABC Computed Tomography Operations Manual Vol. IIIHealth ABC Baseline FormsAll persons in the study were selected to be free of disability in activities of daily living and free of functional limitation

(defined as any difficulty walking a quarter of a mile or any difficulty walking up 10 steps without resting) at baseline.]]>
The HABC cohort began in 1997 (9/1948 - 4/1953) and has continued with annual examinations to the present.]]>