Aro et al4 | Prospective cohort study; 1966–2007; Finland | 10 785 | Mean 44 years | 52 | Participants were ‘apparently healthy’ community population, aged 30–59 years between 1966 and 1972 in the Finnish Social Insurance Institution’s Coronary Heart Disease Study |
Cheng et al12 | Prospective cohort study; 1968–2007; USA | 7575 | Mean 47 years | 46 | Participants were community-based individuals from the Framingham Heart Study |
Crisel et al19 | Prospective cohort study; enrolment 2000–2002; USA | 938 | Mean 66 years | 82 | Participants had stable coronary artery disease in the Heart and Soul Study |
Erikssen and Otterstad10 | Prospective cohort study; enrolment 1972–1975; Norway | 1635 | 40–59 years at baseline | 100 | Participants were apparently healthy men aged 40–59 years free of coronary heart disease |
Hisamatsu et al17 | Prospective cohort study; 1980–2009; Japan | 9051 | Mean 50 years | 44 | Participants were community dwellers, aged 30–95 years from 300 randomly selected areas throughout Japan |
Knuiman et al20 | Prospective cohort study; 1994–2010; Australia | 4267 | Mean 52 years | 44 | Participants were community-based adults, aged 25–84 years in the Busselton Health Study |
Kobayashi et al21 | Prospective cohort study; baseline survey 1989–1994; Japan | 5425 | 30–83 years | 47 | Participants were Japanese urban adults aged 30–83 years without prior cardiovascular disease who attended a routine examination |
Magnani et al22 | Prospective cohort study; 1997–2011; USA | 2722 | Mean 74 years | 48 | Participants were a random sampling of community-dwelling older patients (age 70–79 years) free of disability or functional limitation from the Health, Aging and Body Composition Study |
Nielsen et al13 | Prospective cohort study; 2001–2010; Denmark | 288 181 | Median 54 years | 45 | Participants were from primary care who had ≥1 ECG recorded at the Copenhagen General Practitioners’ Laboratory |
Perez et al14 | Retrospective cohort study; March 1987 to July 2000; USA | 42 751 | Mean 56 years | 90 | Participants had initial ECG between March 1987 and July 2000. Indications for ECG and background disease—not known, but patients with known atrial fibrillation were excluded from study |
Rajala et al11 | Prospective cohort study; January 1977 to December 1982; Finland | 674 | Age >85 years | 18 | Participants were 85 years or older community-based sample living in the city of Tampere in 1977 |
Soliman et al15 | Retrospective cohort study; 1987–1998; USA | 15 429 | Mean 54.2 years | 45 | Participants were from four US communities aged 45–64 years in the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities Study |
Soliman et al23 | Prospective cohort study; 1988 to December 2006; USA | 7501 | Mean 59.3 years | 47 | Participants were civilian non-institutionalised US population in the NHANES Study |
Uhm et al16 | Retrospective cohort study; unclear; Korea | 3816 | Mean 61.0 years | 47.2 | Participants were aged >18 years with hypertension and sinus rhythm on first ECG |