What does BHAS mean in HEALTHCARE

The Bambui Health and Aging Study (BHAS) is an observational study evaluating the health of seniors in Brazil. It focuses on risk factors associated with aging and determinants of health outcomes in elderly individuals. The study will also include a comprehensive assessment of the physical, psychological, social, economic and environmental components that influence the health and quality of life of elderly people.

The Bambui Health and Aging Study is open to senior citizens over 65 years from the city of Bambuí, Brazil.

Participants for the study will be randomly selected from a database created by linking existing public databases from municipalities, state regulatory agencies, real estate records, death certificates, health plans or private sector sources such as banks or supermarkets.

Participation in BHAS entails completing questionnaires about lifestyle habits, medical history and family medical history; undergoing physical examinations; performing tests including blood tests; providing anthropometric measurements; receiving vaccinations; completing cognitive assessments; providing dental records; providing urine samples; providing saliva samples; donating biological specimens like hair or nails for research purposes; monitoring activities such as exercise or diet via data-tracking wearables or other devices. All participation is strictly voluntary.

You may be asked to provide information about your personal characteristics (such as age, sex); family history (such as parents' ages at death); lifestyle habits (such as smoking status); physical activity level (including any exercise done around your home); socio-economic variables (such as level of education); dietary intake (including questions about food frequency for specific items); alcohol use (including types consumed and frequency or quantity used); use of medications over a period of time). Information related to self-reported chronic conditions such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes mellitus type II among others might also be requested.

No, there is no cost associated with participating in the study. All healthcare costs associated with visits related to volunteer participation are covered by either insurance companies or government programs available exclusively for research purposes. Participants will receive guidance on how to access these benefits within their region if they experience any financial difficulties related to transportation costs when attending appointments related to their participation in the study.

Participation in this cohort involves one initial visit at a local clinic followed by four additional visits throughout 2 years follow-up period where we gather information about possible changes that were not gathered during baseline visit. We strongly recommend all participants return for all scheduled follow-up visits so we can better understand how changes over time affect their health outcomes.

Absolutely! All data collected during this study remains confidential according to applicable laws regarding data privacy protection. All contact information provided by participants will never be shared publicly without expressed written consent from each individual involved.

Your data will be stored securely at our main storage facility located at UFMG/UNA Campus - Belo Horizonte - MG until completion date set on August 2022 when it becomes eligible for further analysis by other institutions who have purchased access through our Research Data Access Program previously established before this study began.