CONSTANCES: a general prospective population-based cohort for occupational and environmental epidemiology: cohort profile

Why the cohort was set up?

CONSTANCES is a general-purpose cohort with a focus on occupational and environmental factors.

Cohort participants

CONSTANCES was designed as a randomly selected sample of French adults aged 18–69 years at inception; 200 000 participants will be included.

Data collection phases

At enrolment, the participants are invited to complete questionnaires and to attend a health screening centre (HSC) for a health examination. A biobank will be set up. The follow-up includes an yearly self-administered questionnaire, a periodic visit to an HSC and linkage to social and national health administrative databases.

Main types of data collected

Data collected for participants include social and demographic characteristics, socioeconomic status, life events and behaviours. Regarding occupational and environmental factors, a wealth of data on organisational, chemical, biological, biomechanical and psychosocial lifelong exposure, as well as residential characteristics, are collected at enrolment and during follow-up. The health data cover a wide spectrum: self-reported health scales, reported prevalent and incident diseases, long-term chronic diseases and hospitalisations, sick-leaves, handicaps, limitations, disabilities and injuries, healthcare usage and services provided, and causes of death.

Control of selection effects

To take into account non-participation and attrition, a random cohort of non-participants was set up and will be followed through the same national databases as participants.

Data access

Inclusions begun at the end of 2012 and more than 110 000 participants were already included by September 2016. Several projects on occupational and environmental risks already applied to a public call for nested research projects.

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