The Dehgolan Prospective Cohort Study (DehPCS) on non-communicable diseases in a Kurdish community in the west of Iran

The Dehgolan Prospective Cohort Study (DehPCS) was conducted to examine and identify risk factors for the most prevalent non-communicable diseases (NCDs). In addition, in order to examine participants’ health status, socioeconomic status, behavioral factors, nutritional status, and environmental exposures, the DehPCS collected, analyzed, and stored blood, urine, nail, and hair samples to conduct genetic studies and identify biomarkers and other biological determinants of NCDs. In total, 3,996 adults aged 35 to 70 from the general population participated in the study from February 2018 to March 2019. Of them, 43.7% were women. The first follow-up wave was conducted with 3,995 participants. Information on a wide range of variables was collected, including on socioeconomic status, lifestyle, nutritional status, habits, physical examination findings, medication use, and medical history. Proxy variables such as body mass index, metabolic equivalent task score, wealth index, and macronutrients and micronutrients were calculated. The most common self-reported diseases in descending order were kidney stones, hypertension, and fatty liver. The prevalence of diabetes and hypertension was 9.3% and 33.4%, respectively. All data, samples, and measurements will be collected again at 5-year intervals. Thus, it will be possible to examine time-dependent changes in the risk factors of NCDs. The DehPCS can be used to study the relationships among genetics, lifestyle, socioeconomic status, and environmental risk factors and the most prevalent NCDs in case-cohort studies using a nested case-control design that will be applied to the cohort infrastructure. Researchers can also submit pre-proposals via the following web address: http://c.ddrc.ac.ir/persianaccess/Account/Login.