Study Overview

The GuLFSTUDY is a prospective cohort study of the potential health effects associated with the response and clean-up related to the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill. The cohort includes clean-up workers and others who completed clean-up safety training, but were not hired.

Participants were recruited between March 2011 and March 2013. At the time of enrollment, participants completed a comprehensive telephone interview that collected information on response and clean-up work history, health status, and lifestyle factors. A subgroup of participants was invited to complete a home visit following the enrollment interview where additional questionnaire data, clinical measurements, biospecimens, and environmental samples were collected.

A total of 32,608 participants enrolled in the study, and 11,193 completed a home visit. A team of experts in exposure assessment developed ordinal and quantitative estimates of spill-related exposures, including exposure to chemicals such as hydrocarbons, volatile organic compounds, particulate matter, and dispersants. The cohort represents the full range of spill-related jobs and includes vulnerable subgroups, such as those exposed to both environmental contamination and the socioeconomic effects of the spill.

The cohort will be followed for at least 10 years by telephone interview, in-person exams, and through public health records for major outcomes like cancer and mortality. The first follow-up telephone interview (n = 21,256) and clinical exam (n = 3,401) are complete and provide additional health information, biospecimens, and clinical measurements. As the largest and most comprehensive study of its kind, the GuLFSTUDY offers researchers opportunities to examine a range of a priori and novel hypotheses.