Join the BLSA!
Now Recruiting Healthy Adults Age 20 and Older
Be a part of history, and support healthier aging for future generations! BLSA participants have played a central role in advancing our understanding of what it means to get older and thereby helped improve the lives of people here and around the world.
BLSA is continually accepting new participants. If you live within a two-hour drive from the Baltimore, Maryland area, and may be interested in joining the BLSA, please contact the BLSA recruitment team by telephone or email.
To enroll in the Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging, you should:
- Be at least 20 years old
- Be in good health
- Have no difficulties or need for help in performing self-care or instrumental activities of daily living (grooming, dressing, etc.)
- Be able to walk independently for at least 400 meters without using assistive devices or experiencing any symptoms
- Have no shortness of breath while performing normal activities of daily living, such as walking or climbing stairs
- Have no substantial cognitive impairment based on mental status screening tests
- Show no evidence of compromised immune function
- Weigh less than 300 pounds and/or have a BMI of less than 40.
- Have no history of:
- Diabetes
- Kidney or liver disease
- Heart attack or heart failure
- Angina
- Stroke
- Active cancer
- Cardiovascular disease
- Metabolic disease
- Several hormonal dysfunction
- Neurological disease
- Established genetic diseases
- Birth defects
- Severe gastrointestinal disease
- Muscle-skeletal conditions due to disease or trauma
- Severe psychiatric conditions
- Any medical condition that requires continuous use for long-term treatment with antibiotics, corticosteroids, immunosuppressants, H2 blockers, or pain medications
- Severe sensory deficits (e.g., legally blind)
- Any condition that precludes neuropsychological testing or providing informed consent.
If conditions considered as exclusion criteria for study entry develop any time after the baseline evaluation, the participant remains in the study.
Please note that the criteria required to join the BLSA study changes depending on the study’s evolving needs and areas of research focus. Therefore, the BLSA cannot guarantee your participation in the study, even if you meet the basic eligibility requirements.
For Additional Information, please call 410-350-3941 or email.
How frequent are study visits?
Potential participants must agree to make every effort to be followed through their lifetime, coming to the BLSA study site in Baltimore, Maryland. Study visits are scheduled at several-year intervals, depending on the age of the participant.
The BLSA uses the following schedule:
- 20 to 59 years—approximately every 4 years
- 60 to 80 years—approximately every 2 years
- Older than 80 years—approximately every year
If a BLSA participant is unable to attend their study visit, follow-up information may be collected through a home visit or telephone interview.
Questions?
Telephone
1-410-350-3941
1-800-225-2572 ext. 3941