Data Resource Profile: Cardiovascular disease research using linked bespoke studies and electronic health records (CALIBER)

• Published in: International journal of epidemiology Vol. 41; no. 6; pp. 1625 - 1638
• Main Authors: Denaxas, S. C., George, J., Herrett, E., Shah, A. D., Kalra, D., Hingorani, A. D., Kivimaki, M., Timmis, A. D., Smeeth, L., Hemingway, H.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford Oxford University Press 01.12.2012
• Subjects: Biological and medical sciences; Biomedical Research - organization & administration; Biomedical Research - statistics & numerical data; Cardiovascular Diseases - epidemiology; Cause of Death; Data Resource Profiles; Databases, Factual - statistics & numerical data; Electronic Health Records - organization & administration; Electronic Health Records - statistics & numerical data; Hospitalization - statistics & numerical data; Humans; Medical Record Linkage - methods; Medical sciences; Miscellaneous; Primary Health Care - statistics & numerical data; Public health. Hygiene; Public health. Hygiene-occupational medicine; Registries - statistics & numerical data; Socioeconomic Factors; United Kingdom; British Isles; electronic heath records; Scientific research; Genetic linkage; Resource; Genetics; Cardiovascular disease; Medical record; Circulatory system; cardiovascular; linkages; Public health; Electronic medical record
• ISSN: 0300-5771; 1464-3685; 1464-3685
• DOI: 10.1093/ije/dys188

The goal of cardiovascular disease (CVD) research using linked bespoke studies and electronic health records (CALIBER) is to provide evidence to inform health care and public health policy for CVDs across different stages of translation, from discovery, through evaluation in trials to implementation, where linkages to electronic health records provide new scientific opportunities. The initial approach of the CALIBER programme is characterized as follows: (i) Linkages of multiple electronic heath record sources: examples include linkages between the longitudinal primary care data from the Clinical Practice Research Datalink, the national registry of acute coronary syndromes (Myocardial Ischaemia National Audit Project), hospitalization and procedure data from Hospital Episode Statistics and cause-specific mortality and social deprivation data from the Office of National Statistics. Current cohort analyses involve a million people in initially healthy populations and disease registries with ∼10(5) patients. (ii) Linkages of bespoke investigator-led cohort studies (e.g. UK Biobank) to registry data (e.g. Myocardial Ischaemia National Audit Project), providing new means of ascertaining, validating and phenotyping disease. (iii) A common data model in which routine electronic health record data are made research ready, and sharable, by defining and curating with meta-data >300 variables (categorical, continuous, event) on risk factors, CVDs and non-cardiovascular comorbidities. (iv) Transparency: all CALIBER studies have an analytic protocol registered in the public domain, and data are available (safe haven model) for use subject to approvals. For more information, e-mail s.denaxas@ucl.ac.uk.