Submit your Research Proposal
Are you planning a research project? Then, you can submit a research proposal to obtain data or material of participants from the Amsterdam Cohort Studies.
Please use the following documents for your proposal:
If you are not affiliated with the ACS, please contact Neeltje Kootstra (n.a.kootstra@amsterdamumc.nl) before submitting your full proposal.
If you are affiliated with the ACS, you can send your research proposal to Neeltje Kootstra (n.a.kootstra@amsterdamumc.nl). The project leaders of ACS decide whether the application will be approved, a process that requires sufficient time. If the proposal is approved, we will make an appointment with you to further arrange the sharing of data or materials.
ACS Study Protocol
The inclusion criteria for the ACS are as follows:
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Assigned male sex at birth
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Having had sex with a man in the preceding 6 months
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At least 16 years of age
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Proficient in reading and/or speaking Dutch
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Living in the Amsterdam region or makes use of MSM-related (virtual) meeting places in Amsterdam
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Able and willing to provide informed consent
After assessing the inclusion criteria and providing written informed consent, MSM enter one of two study arms.
Study arm 1: Participants without HIV
Study arm 2: Participants living with HIV
Study visits to the ACS:
1. Baseline visit. All study participants complete a study-staff assisted questionnaire on key demographic characteristics and medical history. Additionally, participants complete an online questionnaire about other socio-demographic characteristics, health, wellbeing, sexual behavior and associated factors. HIV/STI testing is performed at the Public Health Service of Amsterdam and blood is collected for storage.
2. 6-monthly follow-up visits. Semiannually, all participants receive an online questionnaire about health, wellbeing, sexual behavior, and associated factors. HIV/STI testing is performed at the Public Health Service of Amsterdam and blood is collected for storage.
If a participant is newly diagnosed with HIV during follow-up, he is invited for an additional study visit (the seroconversion visit) in which he completes a study staff assisted seroconversion questionnaire and is asked if he wants to keep participating in the ACS. During the first 6 months after the seroconversion visit, the participant visits the cohort every month to draw blood and complete a short health questionnaire. After this period follow-up becomes semiannually again.
Guidelines for using ACS data
Researchers can submit research proposals to obtain data or material of participants from the ACS.
Participants who contributed to the study have given informed consent to conduct research within the scope of the study. This is one of the criteria that is considered when a research proposal is submitted. It is not allowed to use ACS data for other reasons than outlined in the approved research proposal. In addition, you must comply with laws and regulations such as the GDPR. A data or material sharing agreement must be signed in advance.
Data Collection and dictionary
Participants complete online questionnaires prior to their study visits.
During the study visits, additional data are collected and samples are taken for HIV/STI testing, testing for other infections, and storage. Questionnaires and tests have changed and can still change over time.
A comprehensive data dictionary for the ACS is currently under development. It will provide an overview and description of the available variables and datasets.
In the meantime, researchers with questions about available data are encouraged to contact the ACS research team.
ACS for researchers
The ACS is a longitudinal study with >40 years of follow-up. The behavioural & psyschosocial data and biomedical material collection is large and offers many opportunities for research. The ACS team is multidisciplinary and enjoys working with scientists all over the world. On this page you will find how to work together with the ACS and we provide information on our study protocol and data collection.