Department of Public Health and Primary Care

Epidemiology of Chronic Diseases

Presentation of unit

The Epidemiology of Chronic Diseases Research Unit conducts several research projects relating to disease prevention and burden including risk factors epidemiology, lifestyle changes, risk management, physical activity at work and psychosocial risk factors. The Unit is in close collaboration with the Belgian institute for health Sciensano (Brussels), the National Research Centre for the Working Environment Copenhagen, Jožef Stefan Institute Ljubljana, Imperial College London, Karolinska Institute Stockholm and University of Galway, with whom it shares several projects on the epidemiology and prevention of major health problems in developed and developing countries.

Our mission is to improve the health of people through population-based research with the aim to develop appropriate preventive strategies.

Topics

  • Population research

  • Epidemiology and prevention of non-communicable diseases (focus on cardiometabolic diseases)

  • Lifestyles, risk factor management, risk estimation

  • Social inequalities: cancer, cardiovascular diseases, COVID-19

  • Physical activity health paradox

  • Development of personal decision aids for the management of cardiovascular diseases

  • Psychosocial risk factors, job stress

  • Burden of chronic diseases / Health Related Quality of Life with focus on chronic diseases

  • Epidemiology of major health problems in developing countries (TBC, dengue, Marburg-virus)

  • Clinical trials / research methods in epidemiology and biostatistics 

Main activities

  • Teaching in public health, epidemiology, prevention, research methodology, health sociology, biostatistics at graduate and postgraduate level

  • Research focusing on the prevention of chronic disease

  • Reporting in journals with high scientific and societal impact

  • Active membership in several scientific societies and participation in advisory boards

List of most important projects

  • The EUROASPIRE studies
  • WHO CVD Risk: WHO project on Cardiovascular Risk Estimation
  • SIMPLIFY: Antihypertensive treatment in in primary care
  • Cardiovascular risk scoring (SCORE, SCORE II, SCORE II-OP, BELSCORE, AUSSCORE, SMART2, SCORE-DIAB, EUROASPIRE Risk Calculator)
  • Community Health Worker project
  • Study on Dietary Methyl-Group Donor Intake and Breast Cancer
  • HELICON: Social inequalities and indirect health effects of the COVID-19 crisis in Belgium
  • Chronic Kidney Disease in Europe
  • AFFIRMO: Atrial Fibrillation integrated approach in FraIl, multimoRbid and polyMedicated Older people
  • COVID-19 burden in hemodialysis patients
  • COCCOS: transition program for young people with Chronic COnditionS
  • ESC Prevention of Cardiovascular Disease Programme - The Patient Survey project
  • FIBROQOL; Quality of life in patients with fibromyalgia
  • TIARA: Tracking Infants At Risk for Autism project
  • INTERASPIRE study
  • SERVAL: SSRI use & valvular disease
  • Hypertension control in Latin-America
  • HEARTMAN: Personal decision support system for heart failure management
  • QAPICHE: Quality of life in patients with chronic disease
  • GEN-CHD: Gender differences in the management of CHD patients
  • FEPA: Flemish Employees' Physical Activity study
  • STRAW-Project: Comprehensive real-time modelling study of stress at work using portable devices
  • ASKLEPIOS: longitudinal population study focusing on the interplay between ageing, cardiovascular hemodynamics and inflammation in (preclinical) cardiovascular disease
  • MONICA/RACA-Ghent: registry of acute coronary syndromes
  • WAIST: Contribution of excess body weight to the societal impact of NCDs in Belgium

Collaborators

Chair

Prof dr Dirk De Bacquer

Scientific staff

  • Cheïma Amrouch

  • Prof dr Els Clays

  • em Prof dr Guy De Backer

  • Prof dr Delphine De Smedt

  • Ilka Jacobs

  • Yasmine Khan

  • Margo Ketels

  • em Prof dr Patrick Vanderstuyft

  • Fleur Van De Wielle
  • Hendrik Van Simaeys
  • Prof dr Katrien Vanthomme

  • Dr Lisa Van Wilder

Administrative staff

Evelien Temmerman

Most important national and international partnerships

  • European Society of Cardiology - Cardiovascular Risk Collaboration (ESC-CRC)
  • Individual-participant-data meta-analysis in working populations consortium (IPD-Work)
  • HELICON consortium
  • NCD Risk Factor Collaboration (NCD-RisC)
  • PRICOV consortium
  • International Commission on Occupational Health - Scientific Committee on Cardiovascular Disease (ICOH)
  • Global Cardiovascular Risk Consortium (GCVRC)
  • COPSOQ network
  • Belgian institute for health Sciensano
  • Centre of Excellence in Sustainable Pharmaceutical Engineering & Manufacturing (CESPE)
  • European Society of Cardiology - Population Science and Public Health section (ESC-EAPC)
  • UGent@Work
  • Vlaams Agentschap Zorg en Gezondheid
  • Brussels Interdisciplinary Research Centre on Migration and Minorities (BIRMM)
  • European Society of Cardiology - Cardiovascular Risk Collaboration (ESC-CRC)
  • Individual-participant-data meta-analysis in working populations consortium (IPD-Work)
  • HELICON consortium
  • NCD Risk Factor Collaboration (NCD-RisC)
  • PRICOV consortium
  • International Commission on Occupational Health - Scientific Committee on Cardiovascular Disease (ICOH)
  • Global Cardiovascular Risk Consortium (GCVRC)
  • COPSOQ network
  • Belgian institute for health Sciensano
  • Centre of Excellence in Sustainable Pharmaceutical Engineering & Manufacturing (CESPE)
  • European Society of Cardiology - Population Science and Public Health section (ESC-EAPC)
  • UGent@Work
  • Vlaams Agentschap Zorg en Gezondheid
  • Brussels Interdisciplinary Research Centre on Migration and Minorities (BIRMM)

Contact data

Department of Public Health and Primary Care
Epidemiology of Chronic Diseases Research Unit
Ghent University
C. Heymanslaan 10 entrance 42 (building K3, 4th floor)
B-9000 Ghent
Belgium

Phone: 0032 (0)9 332 36 17

E-mail: GE39-EP@UGent.be