Vellore Birth Cohort (VBC)
The VBC is a longitudinal study of maternal health and pregnancy outcomes, established between 1969 and 1973. It included mothers living within specified urban and rural areas of the North Arcot district. Besides measurements at birth, the babies were followed up during infancy for a variety of outcomes. Subsequently, the children were followed up between the ages of 6 to 8 years, and 10 to 15 years to study the effects of prenatal factors on physical growth, development, and health during childhood and adolescence. The VBC is defined as the children born during the study period (1969 to 1973), and comprised 10,670 single live born babies (6,260 in rural areas and 4,410 in urban areas). The cohort was then re-traced in 1998 to 2002 when aged 26 to 32 years.
Study design
Cohort - birth
Number of participants at first data collection
20,626 (mothers)
10,670 (children)
Recruitment is ongoing
Age at first data collection
Birth (children)
Varied (mothers)
Participant year of birth
1969 (children)
Varied (mothers)
Participant sex
All
Representative sample at baseline?
No
Sample features
Country
Year of first data collection
1969
Primary Institutions
Christian Medical College, Vellore
Links
Profile paper DOI
Funders
British Heart Foundation
Christian Medical College, Vellore (CMC)
Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR)
London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (LSHTM)
National Centre for Health Statistics
Ongoing?
Yes
Data types collected
- Physical or biological assessment (e.g. blood, saliva, gait, grip strength, anthropometry)
- Self-report questionnaire – unspecified
- None
- None
- None
Engagement
Keywords
