Research at the Research Centre of Applied and Preventive Cardiovascular Medicine

Research projects

The Cardiovascular Risk in Young Finns Study (YFS) - Epidemiologic study on atherosclerotic precursors in Finnish children and young adults

The Cardiovascular Risk in Young Finns Study is one of the largest follow-up studies into cardiovascular risk from childhood to adulthood. The main aim is to determine the contribution made by childhood lifestyle, biological, and psychological measures to the risk of cardiovascular diseases in adulthood.

Project Leader: Academy Professor Olli Raitakari

Read more about the project

The STRIP Project - A Prospective Randomized Trial of Atherosclerosis Prevention in Infancy and Childhood - An Epidemiological Study

The STRIP study is unique worldwide; no other study has started dietary intervention in infancy and continued it for 20 years, and simultaneously collected data with repeated measurements on a vast number of risk factors and subclinical markers for cardiovascular health.

The main purpose of the STRIP Study (Special Turku Coronary Risk Factor Intervention Project) is the prevention of atherosclerosis and coronary heart disease by a dietary intervention which began in infancy and has continued to early adulthood. The trial was launched in 1990 when 1062 7-month-old children and their families were enrolled. Half of the families have received individualized dietary and other life-style counseling at least twice a year whereas the rest of the families have served as a control group. The STRIP Study intervention continued until the participants reached the age of 20 years.

Project Leader: Academy Professor Olli Raitakari

Recent publications of the Research Centre of Applied and Preventive Cardiovascular Medicine

Trans-ancestral genome-wide association study of longitudinal pubertal height growth and shared heritability with adult health outcomes (2024)

Genome Biology

Bradfield JP, Kember RL, Ulrich A, Balkiyarova Z, Alyass A, Aris IM, Bell JA, Broadaway KA, Chen Z, Chai JF, Davies NM, Fernandez-Orth D, Bustamante M, Fore R, Ganguli A, Heiskala A, Hottenga JJ, Íñiguez C, Kobes S, Leinonen J, Lowry E, Lyytikainen LP, Mahajan A, Pitkänen N, Schnurr TM, Have CT, Strachan DP, Thiering E, Vogelezang S, Wade KH, Wang CA, Wong A, Holm LA, Chesi A, Choong C, Cruz M, Elliott P, Franks S, Frithioff-Bøjsøe C, Gauderman WJ, Glessner JT, Gilsanz V, Griesman K, Hanson RL, Kaakinen M, Kalkwarf H, Kelly A, Kindler J, Kähönen M, Lanca C, Lappe J, Lee NR, McCormack S, Mentch FD, Mitchell JA, Mononen N, Niinikoski H, Oken E, Pahkala K, Sim X, Teo YY, Baier LJ, van Beijsterveldt T, Adair LS, Boomsma DI, de Geus E, Guxens M, Eriksson JG, Felix JF, Gilliland FD, Biobank PM, Hansen T, Hardy R, Hivert MF, Holm JC, Jaddoe VWV, Järvelin MR, Lehtimäki T, Mackey DA, Meyre D, Mohlke KL, Mykkänen J, Oberfield S, Pennell CE, Perry JRB, Raitakari O, Rivadeneira F, Saw SM, Sebert S, Shepherd JA, Standl M, Sørensen TIA, Timpson NJ, Torrent M, Willemsen G, Hypponen E, Power C, Early Growth Genetics Consortium, McCarthy MI, Freathy RM, Widén E, Hakonarson H, Prokopenko I, Voight BF, Zemel BS, Grant SFA, Cousminer DL