This cohort will make it possible, thanks to the follow-up of the participants for a long period of time, to study the effects of risk factors on various health problems, and to describe their evolution over the years. Ultimately, it should be made up of a large representative sample of adults aged 18 to 69 affiliated to the General Social Security Scheme. It will then be the largest study of this type in France.
This project, called Constances (for CONSULTS of CES-Health Examination Centers), is launched jointly by Inserm, Cnamts and the Ministry of Health (Directorate General for Health). The participants will be invited between January and March 2009, to go to their health examination center for a complete visit including in particular a medical and paramedical examination: biometrics, blood pressure, audiogram, vision, spirometry, biology; for the elderly: walking tests, balance, muscle tone, cognitive function tests. They will also be asked to answer questionnaires on their family and personal history, lifestyles, professional history, working conditions and professional exposures, family history, emotional life, social networks, living conditions, recourse to care.
After this pilot phase, they will be followed over the long term in order to analyze the interactions between risk factors and personal characteristics. Four main themes will be followed in particular: professional factors, aging, social inequalities in health and specific problems of women’s health.
