EDITORIAL
Annals of Internal Medicine
Celebrating the ACP Centennial: From the Annals Archive
D
uring the 2015 centennial year of the American College of Physicians, publisher of Annals of Internal Medicine, Annals editors will link an article in each issue with an earlier paper from our archives addressing the same disease or clinical question. We hope our readers find this interesting, and we welcome comments, especially from physicians who were practicing at the time of publication of the original paper who might offer insight into the impact of the earlier paper on their knowledge or practice. In this issue, DeFilippis and colleagues (1) conclude that several cardiovascular risk-scoring systems, including versions of the Framingham risk score, overestimate the risk for cardiovascular disease in a contemporary multiethnic cohort. In a seminal report in the July 1961 issue of the Annals, Kannel and colleagues (2) analyzed data from the first 6 years of what was called The Framingham Study. From 1948 to 1950, more than 5000 residents of Framingham, Massachusetts, considered a typical American town, were recruited and given biennial physical examinations and extensive testing that included chest radiographs, electrocardiograms, and measures of lipoprotein and cholesterol levels. Death certificates and, when available, autopsy results were also reviewed. Virtually all of the participants were white. Kannel and colleagues (2) reported that the manifestations of coronary heart disease differed between
men and women, a high immediate mortality was associated with myocardial infarction, and hypercholesterolemia and hypertension preceded coronary heart disease and increased the risk for its occurrence. These results and subsequent analyses led to the development of the Framingham risk score. The study, now known as the Framingham Heart Study, continues to this day. In addition to following the original participants, the study has enrolled 2 generations of their descendants. Participants reflecting the more diverse population of contemporary Framingham have also been added. As of 2013, more than 100 original participants were still alive—the youngest aged 95 years. Deborah Cotton, MD, MPH Deputy Editor Ann Intern Med. 2015;162:310. doi:10.7326/M14-2819
References 1. DeFilippis AP, Young R, Carrubba CJ, McEvoy JW, Budoff MJ, Blumenthal RS, et al. An analysis of calibration and discrimination among multiple cardiovascular risk scores in a modern multiethnic cohort. Ann Intern Med. 2015;162:266-75. doi:10.7326/M14-2820 2. Kannel, WB, Dawber TR, Kagan A, Revotskie N, Stokes J 3rd. Factors of risk in the development of coronary heart disease—six-year follow-up experience: The Framingham Study. Ann Intern Med. 1961;55:33-50. doi:10.7326/0003-4819-55-1-33
310 © 2015 American College of Physicians
Downloaded From: http://annals.org/ by a Penn State University Hershey User on 05/27/2015
Annals of Internal Medicine
Celebrating the ACP Centennial: From the Annals Archive
D
uring the 2015 centennial year of the American College of Physicians, publisher of Annals of Internal Medicine, Annals editors will link an article in each issue with an earlier paper from our archives addressing the same disease or clinical question. We hope our readers find this interesting, and we welcome comments, especially from physicians who were practicing at the time of publication of the original paper who might offer insight into the impact of the earlier paper on their knowledge or practice. In this issue, DeFilippis and colleagues (1) conclude that several cardiovascular risk-scoring systems, including versions of the Framingham risk score, overestimate the risk for cardiovascular disease in a contemporary multiethnic cohort. In a seminal report in the July 1961 issue of the Annals, Kannel and colleagues (2) analyzed data from the first 6 years of what was called The Framingham Study. From 1948 to 1950, more than 5000 residents of Framingham, Massachusetts, considered a typical American town, were recruited and given biennial physical examinations and extensive testing that included chest radiographs, electrocardiograms, and measures of lipoprotein and cholesterol levels. Death certificates and, when available, autopsy results were also reviewed. Virtually all of the participants were white. Kannel and colleagues (2) reported that the manifestations of coronary heart disease differed between
men and women, a high immediate mortality was associated with myocardial infarction, and hypercholesterolemia and hypertension preceded coronary heart disease and increased the risk for its occurrence. These results and subsequent analyses led to the development of the Framingham risk score. The study, now known as the Framingham Heart Study, continues to this day. In addition to following the original participants, the study has enrolled 2 generations of their descendants. Participants reflecting the more diverse population of contemporary Framingham have also been added. As of 2013, more than 100 original participants were still alive—the youngest aged 95 years. Deborah Cotton, MD, MPH Deputy Editor Ann Intern Med. 2015;162:310. doi:10.7326/M14-2819
References 1. DeFilippis AP, Young R, Carrubba CJ, McEvoy JW, Budoff MJ, Blumenthal RS, et al. An analysis of calibration and discrimination among multiple cardiovascular risk scores in a modern multiethnic cohort. Ann Intern Med. 2015;162:266-75. doi:10.7326/M14-2820 2. Kannel, WB, Dawber TR, Kagan A, Revotskie N, Stokes J 3rd. Factors of risk in the development of coronary heart disease—six-year follow-up experience: The Framingham Study. Ann Intern Med. 1961;55:33-50. doi:10.7326/0003-4819-55-1-33
310 © 2015 American College of Physicians
Downloaded From: http://annals.org/ by a Penn State University Hershey User on 05/27/2015
