Makgae Phuti, Sebati Betty, Siweya Hlengani, Monyeki Kotsedi
Physiology and Environmental Health Department, University of Limpopo, Sovenga 0727, South Africa.
Executive Dean Faculty of Science and Agriculture, University of Limpopo, Sovenga 0727, South Africa.
Children (Basel). 2020 May 27;7(6):51. doi: 10.3390/children7060051.
The noncommunicable diseases' (NCDs) profile is changing rapidly from one country to another. A well-formulated cohort study in Africa could answer major questions relating to the changing profile of NCDs risk in Africa. The aim of the present study was to outline the genesis, procedures, attrition rate and major reasons for study participants to miss measurement sessions in the Ellisras Longitudinal Study (ELS). Method: The ELS followed multiple longitudinal designs comprising repeated measurements in more than one cohort with overlapping ages. Age cohort and time of measurement effects could be identified. A cluster random sampling method was used to sample 2255 participants (1201 males and 1054 females), aged 2 to 10.9 years at baseline (November 1996). Information on lifestyle (tobacco and smoking, alcohol intake, physical activity and socioeconomic status) and biological risk factors for NCD and educational achievements were collected over time. The participants were followed 17 times over the past 25 years with measurements (blood pressure and anthropometry) collected twice during the first consecutive 8 years to account for growth dynamics and other health-related variables. The attrition rate for ELS sample for boys (14%-27.3%) was significantly ( < 0.05) higher than girls (7.9%-18.6%) from May 1999 to November 2003. There was a significant ( < 0.05) increase (25.3%-70.3%) in attrition rate from November 2009 to December 2015. The ELS participant migration to urban areas provided a unique opportunity to investigate the effect of urban life on these rural young adults given the previous data collected on the same subjects at a younger age (3-10 years at baseline in 1996). Conclusion: A well-formulated ELS study in Africa could answer major questions relating to the changing magnitude of NCDs risk factor profiles in Africa.
非传染性疾病（NCDs）的情况在不同国家之间迅速变化。在非洲开展一项精心设计的队列研究可以回答与非洲非传染性疾病风险情况变化相关的主要问题。本研究的目的是概述埃利斯拉斯纵向研究（ELS）的起源、程序、损耗率以及研究参与者错过测量环节的主要原因。方法：ELS采用了多种纵向设计，包括在多个年龄重叠的队列中进行重复测量。可以识别年龄队列和测量时间的影响。采用整群随机抽样方法，抽取了2255名参与者（1201名男性和1054名女性），基线时（1996年11月）年龄在2至10.9岁之间。随着时间的推移，收集了有关生活方式（烟草与吸烟、酒精摄入、身体活动和社会经济状况）以及非传染性疾病的生物风险因素和教育成就的信息。在过去25年中，对参与者进行了17次跟踪，在连续的前8年中进行了两次测量（血压和人体测量），以考虑生长动态和其他与健康相关的变量。从1999年5月到2003年11月，ELS样本中男孩的损耗率（14% - 27.3%）显著高于女孩（7.9% - 18.6%）（<0.05）。从2009年11月到2015年12月，损耗率有显著（<0.05）上升（25.3% - 70.3%）。鉴于之前在这些受试者年轻时（1996年基线时3至10岁）收集的数据，ELS参与者向城市地区的迁移为研究城市生活对这些农村年轻人的影响提供了独特的机会。结论：在非洲开展一项精心设计的ELS研究可以回答与非洲非传染性疾病风险因素情况变化幅度相关的主要问题。
