| MESA Family StudyThe MESA Family study is an ancillary study (5 R01 HL071250-05) of the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA), a multi-center collaborative study sponsored by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute and National Institutes of Health. The overall goals of the MESA Family Study was to locate and identify genes contributing to subclinical cardiovascular disease (CVD), assessed by coronary calcium (CAC) and carotid intimal medial wall thickness (IMT) in U.S. minority populations. It includes 900 siblings of African American MESA participants (probands) and 900 siblings of Hispanic MESA participants. In the Chicago Field Center the goal was to recruit 450 sibpairs from the biological siblings of African American MESA participants (probands). However, due to an insufficient number of eligible and interested siblings within MESA, MESA Family Steering Committee and NHLBI, decided to recruit families outside MESA. For families recruited outside of MESA, one sibling needs to fulfill the eligibility requirements of a MESA proband and is designated as the proband of the new family. The age range for siblings is 40 years or more for male siblings and 50 years or more for female siblings. A minimum of two siblings for each proband must be enrolled for eligibility. Parents of MESA probands, siblings, and outside families were also examined. The recruitment and data collection ended in September, 2006. We exceeded the goal of completing 450 sibpairs. The total number of subjects was 402 (623 sib pairs). MESA Family Study investigators are currently analyzing the genetic and clinical data to identify genes that contribute to sub-clinical CVD. |
