びーべつと

Long-lasting high quality epidemiological survey Contact information Department of Epidemiology and Public Health,Graduate School of Medical Sciences, Kyushu University Address 3-1-1 Maidashi, Higashi-ku, Fukuoka City, 812-8582, Japan Phone +81 92 642 6151 FAX +81 92 642 4854 E-mail [email protected] Introduction of the Hisayama Study The Hisayama Study is a population-based prospective cohort study that has been conducted in the town of Hisayama, Japan since 1961.The town of Hisayama is a typical rural area adjacent to Fukuoka City in Japan (Figure 1). The reasons why the town of Hisayama were selected for this study were as follows: 1) The residents of Hisayama have almost the same age and occupational distribution as the national average (Figure 2), making it a representative sample for the typical Japanese population. 2) The town of Hisayama is located within 10 miles from Kyushu University, allowing us to keep close communications with residents. 3) Variations of the town�fs population have been small, enabling a follow-up survey with a low rate of loss to follow-up. 4) The mayor and general practitioners in this town have been strongly supportive of the epidemiological research to improve the health condition of residents.