Lausanne cohort 65+ (Lc65+) study

To better understand and prevent frailty as early as age 65

The Lausanne cohort 65+ (Lc65+) study is a research platform that aims to gain new knowledge on frailty in the general population from the age of 65 years onwards. Manifestations of frailty, medical and psycho-social risk factors, and the effects of frailty on health, functional status, and use of health services are central to the research conducted in the Lc65+ project.

The Lc65+ study was launched in 2004 by Prof. Brigitte Santos-Eggimann within the Institute of Social and Preventive Medicine (IUMSP) of the Lausanne University Hospital (CHUV). When the Center for Primary Care and Public Health (Unisanté) was created on 1st January 2019, the Lc65+ study was integrated into this new institution.

The cohort is based on a representative sample of residents of the city of Lausanne (canton Vaud, Switzerland, 120’000 inhabitants) born before, during, and after World War II.

In the long term, this public health project aims to improve the quality of life of older persons by early prevention of frailty and its adverse consequences.

The main objectives

Compare

To compare health evolution and health care service utilization from age 65 onwards in three consecutive samples issued from the general population

Understand

To improve our understanding of the frailty process and its consequences, as well as related needs for care, based on longitudinal data

Prevent

To design preventive interventions aimed at avoiding or delaying unfavorable outcomes in older age

L’étude Lausanne cohorte 65+ contribue également au système d’information sanitaire vaudois, directement ou par des enquêtes complémentaires greffées à cette plateforme. Elle s’inscrit dans le cadre de la politique cantonale « Vieillissement et Santé ».

Les enquêtes complémentaires comprennent :

  • La mesure de la marche avec le système Physilog (de 2005 à 2018, en collaboration avec le Service de gériatrie et réadaptation gériatrique, CHUV et le Laboratoire de mesure et d’analyse des mouvements, EPFL)
  • L’étude de la qualité de vie Vaud-Genève (2011)
  • L’enquête relative au nouveau droit de protection de l’adulte (2014, en collaboration avec le Service de gériatrie et réadaptation gériatrique, CHUV)
  • Le recueil de poussières à domicile (2014-2016, en collaboration avec l’Institut universitaire romand de Santé au Travail)
  • L’enquête complémentaire sur les soins (2012, 2017)
  • Coronavirus et vécu du confinement (2020)