English Longitudinal Study of Ageing
The primary objectives of ELSA were to design and implement data collection on a population aged 50 or older at inception, and to document and distribute the data that are produced. Specific issues addressed were:
1. Health trajectories, disability and healthy life expectancy;
2. The relationship between economic position and health;
3. The determinants of economic position and economic activity at older ages;
4. Social networks, support, and participation;
5. Household and family structure, and the transfer of resources.
Overview
- Acronym
- ELSA
- Website
- ELSA
- Investigators
-
- Contacts
-
General Design
- Study design
- Cohort
- Start - End Year
- 2002 -
- General Information on Follow Up (profile, frequency)
-
Follow-up of participants every every 2 years
- Recruitment Target
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- Individuals
- Number of Participants
- 12,099
- Number of Participants with Biological Samples
- 8,643
Access
Availability of data and biosamples
| Possible Access to Data | |
| Possible Access to Biosamples | |
| Other |
|
Information on all currently archived and forthcoming ELSA derived variables can be found on the ESDS website (http://ukdataservice.ac.uk/)
Marker Paper
Steptoe, A., Breeze, E., Banks, J., & Nazroo, J. (2012). Cohort profile: the English longitudinal study of ageing. International journal of epidemiology, dys168.
PUBMED 23143611Supplementary Information
Reports on each waves can be downloaded at: http://www.ifs.org.uk/ELSA/publications
Timeline
Population
Selection Criteria
- Minimum age
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50
- Maximum age
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100
- Countries
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- United Kingdom
- Territory
- England
Sources of Recruitment
- Specific Population
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- Other specific population : The survey sample is drawn from respondents to the Health Survey for England (HSE) - a study conducted jointly by the Department of Epidemiology and Public Health, UCL, and the National Centre for Social Research, on behalf of the Department of Health.
- Supplementary Information
-
The population was refreshed at waves 3, 4 and 6 to maintain the representation of people aged 50-55 years and to boost the scope for fine-grained analyses. The eligibility criteria was the same as those for wave 1.
Sample Size
- Number of Participants
- 12,099
- Number of Participants with Biological Samples
- 8,643
- Supplementary information about number of participants
-
Wave 0: 19 834 participants
Wave 1 : 12 099 participants
Wave 2 : 9432 participants
Wave 3 : 9771 participants
Wave 4 : 11 050 participants
Wave 5 : 10 275 participants
Wave 6 : 9908 participants
Wave 7 : ongoing
Data Collection Events
| # | Name | Data sources | Data sources - Biosamples | Start | End |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | ELSA - wave 0 |
|
1998 (January) | 2001 (December) | |
| 1 | ELSA - wave 1 |
|
2002 (March) | 2003 (March) | |
| 2 | ELSA - wave 2 |
|
|
2004 (June) | 2005 (July) |
| 3 | ELSA - wave 3 |
|
2006 (May) | 2007 (August) | |
| 4 | ELSA - wave 4 |
|
|
2008 (May) | 2009 (July) |
| 5 | ELSA - wave 5 |
|
2010 (July) | 2011 (June) | |
| 6 | ELSA - wave 6 |
|
|
2012 (May) | 2013 (June) |
| 7 | ELSA - wave 7 |
|
2014 (January) | 2015 (December) |
Participating Studies
| Acronym | Name | Study design | Countries |
|---|
Harmonization Initiatives Included
| Acronym | Name |
|---|
Datasets
| Name | Data Collection Events | Variables |
|---|
Areas of Information Collected
- Socio-demographic and economic characteristics
- Death
- Lifestyle and behaviours
- Physical measures and assessments
- Birth, pregnancy and reproductive health history
- Laboratory measures
- Perception of health, quality of life, development and functional limitations
- Cognition, personality and psychological measures and assessments
- Diseases
- Life events, life plans, beliefs and values
- Symptoms and signs
- Preschool, school and work life
- Medication and supplements
- Social environment and relationships
- Non-pharmacological interventions
- Physical environment
- Health and community care services utilization
- Administrative information
Variables Content Summary
Areas of Information Collected
Areas of Information Collected per per Population and Data Collection Event
Networks
| Acronym | Name | Harmonization Initiatives | Individual Studies |
|---|