WHAT IS THE KORA STUDY?

Cooperative Health Research in the Region of Augsburg (KORA) is a prospective population-based adult cohort study managed by Helmholtz Munich. Its research focus is diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, health in old age, and the environment.

The KORA study recruited 17,602 adult participants aged 25–74 years in four cross-sectional baseline surveys conducted between 1984 and 2001 in the Region of Augsburg, Germany. Augsburg is about 70 kilometres west of Munich, and the ‘Region’ consists of the city of Augsburg and the two bordering districts of Augsburg and Aichach-Friedberg.

Participants were randomly selected from population registries in the study region. Follow-up studies have been carried out at regular intervals for 40 years and are ongoing to date.

The inclusion criteria for the study are:

Main place of residence in the study area

German nationality

Aged 25 to 74 years

In 2021, of the initial participants, 6,493 participants were deceased, and 2,000 participants were lost to follow-up.

WHAT DATA IS AVAILABLE?

KORA has a large medical and OMICs database and is enriched by detailed environmental data at the place of residence and the establishment of a unique air-pollution measurement station.

Data collection is carried out in cooperation with the Augsburg University Hospital and can be categorised as follows:

Examination and self-reported data, including blood pressure, medication use, and many more.

Morbidity and mortality information, such as clinical outcomes and cause of death.

Environmental data from routine monitoring (from regional and national sources), linked to the residential addresses of participants. Includes air pollution, air temperature, relative humidity, noise, green space and socioeconomic data.

Biosamples and omics stored in the Biobank at Helmholtz Munich. Biosample collection mainly consists of blood, serum, plasma, DNA, urine and stool.

KORA IN THE STAGE PROJECT

In the STAGE project, we will deliver a person-centred, digitally supported lifestyle intervention for 12 months. To fulfil this ambition, we will begin recruiting participants from the KORA study (from an eligible 5,000 people) in early January 2026. The intervention will be conducted using the Liva platform, which incorporates health coaching and an app. The aim is to assess its effect on body composition, strength and perceived well-being after one year. By measuring the effect of the intervention, we can understand its impact on citizens’ health and characterise ageing trajectories.

We hope that older people will be empowered to take an active role in managing their lifestyle, via health monitoring and personalised digital solutions. In addition, understanding the economic and health impacts will help inform policymakers as to the feasibility of introducing these types of interventions and monitoring into routine practice, to support healthy ageing from as early as possible.

Find out more

Birgit Linkohr et al. Cohort Profile: Cooperative Health Research in the Region of Augsburg (KORA) 1984–2024. International Journal of Epidemiology, Volume 54, Issue 6, December 2025, dyaf187.

Study website: https://www.helmholtz-munich.de/en/epi/cohort/kora