science

Rotterdam Study

Rotterdam Study is a science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Rotterdam Study rather than just read about it. In short: The Rotterdam Study or ERGO (Dutch: Erasmus Rotterdam Gezondheid Onderzoek) is a prospective, population-based cohort study. The aim of the Rotterdam Study is to investigate etiology, preclinical phase, prognosis and potential intervention targets of chronic diseases in mid- and late-life.

Key takeaways

Rotterdam Study belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Rotterdam Study to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Rotterdam Study from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

The Rotterdam Study or ERGO (Dutch: Erasmus Rotterdam Gezondheid Onderzoek) is a prospective, population-based cohort study. The aim of the Rotterdam Study is to investigate etiology, preclinical phase, prognosis and potential intervention targets of chronic diseases in mid- and late-life. The study focuses on several diseases, such as cardiovascular, neurological, ophthalmological, hepatic, endocrine, dermatological, otolaryngological, respiratory, locomotor and psychiatric diseases.

History Researchers of the department of Epidemiology & Biostatistics at the Erasmus Medical Center led by Professor Albert Hofman, conceptualized the study in the mid-1980s as response to increase in the proportion of elderly persons in the population who are also living with chronic diseases. The study was established in 1990 in the Ommoord district of Rotterdam, The Netherlands. On March 26, 1991, Princess Juliana opened the ERGO research center at Briandplaats, Rotterdam.

Cohorts The Rotterdam Study consists of three cohorts. The initial cohort (RS-I) started out in 1990 with 7,983 men and women aged 55 years and over. Follow-up visits were held in 1993–1995, in 1997–1999, 2002–2004, 2009–2011, and 2014-2015. In 2000 a second cohort was established (RS-II). Another 3,011 inhabitants of Ommoord aged 55 years and over agreed to participate. The participants of this second cohort visited the research center for a follow-up examinations in 2004-2005, 2011–2012, and 2015-2016. The third cohort of the Rotterdam Study (RS-III) started in 2006, this time with inhabitants aged 45 years and over. Inclusion ended in December 2008 and 3,932 participants have been included in this third cohort. The first follow-up examinations were held in 2012-2014.

Research center A typical examination at the Rotterdam Study includes an extensive standardized home interview and two visits to the research center for clinical examinations. Risk factors are measured at the research center, which is located in the middle of the district of Ommoord.

Clinical follow-up Clinical outcomes are continuously monitored throughout the study period for all participants of the three cohorts. Data on morbidity and mortality are collected at general practitioners‘ practises and hospitals. Events are classified according to the ICD-10 system.

Publications The results of the Rotterdam Study have been published in more than 1700 research articles and reports. A list of publications from the Rotterdam Study.

External links The Rotterdam Study - official homepage

Footnotes

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Rotterdam Study

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Rotterdam Study claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Rotterdam Study before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Rotterdam Study ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Rotterdam Study

In research: Rotterdam Study appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Rotterdam Study in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Rotterdam Study is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Cohort studies, Epidemiological study projects, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Rotterdam Study outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Rotterdam Study in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Rotterdam Study means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Rotterdam Study out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Rotterdam Study in simple terms?

Why does Rotterdam Study matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Rotterdam Study?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Rotterdam Study.