The Environmental Influences on Child Health Outcomes (ECHO)-Wide Cohort

The Environmental Influences on Child Health Outcomes (ECHO)-Wide Cohort Study (EWC), a collaborative research design comprising 69 cohorts in 31 consortia, was funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in 2016 to improve children's health in the United States. The EWC harmonizes extant data and collects new data using a standardized protocol, the ECHO-Wide Cohort Data Collection Protocol (EWCP). EWCP visits occur at least once per life stage, but the frequency and timing of the visits vary across cohorts. As of March 4, 2022, the EWC cohorts contributed data from 60,553 children and consented 29,622 children for new EWCP data and biospecimen collection. The median (interquartile range) age of EWCP-enrolled children was 7.5 years (3.7-11.1). Surveys, interviews, standardized examinations, laboratory analyses, and medical record abstraction are used to obtain information in 5 main outcome areas: pre-, peri-, and postnatal outcomes; neurodevelopment; obesity; airways; and positive health. Exposures include factors at the level of place (e.g., air pollution, neighborhood socioeconomic status), family (e.g., parental mental health), and individuals (e.g., diet, genomics).

Citing Articles

Racial and ethnic differences in prenatal exposure to environmental phenols and parabens in the ECHO Cohort.

Bloom M, Upadhyaya S, Nzegwu A, Kuiper J, Buckley J, Aschner J J Expo Sci Environ Epidemiol. 2025; .

PMID: 39955434 DOI: 10.1038/s41370-025-00750-w.

Children's executive functioning and health behaviors across pediatric life stages and ecological contexts.

Kelly N, Kosty D, Bodovski Y, Blackwell C, Ganiban J, Neiderhiser J J Behav Med. 2025; .

PMID: 39786706 DOI: 10.1007/s10865-024-00543-w.

Co-occurring Psychopathology in Children With and Without Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD): Differences by Sex in the ECHO Cohorts.

Volk H, Fortes D, Musci R, Kim A, Bastain T, Camargo Jr C J Autism Dev Disord. 2025; .

PMID: 39762643 DOI: 10.1007/s10803-024-06670-2.

Associations of prenatal urinary melamine, melamine analogues, and aromatic amines with gestational duration and fetal growth in the ECHO Cohort.

Choi G, Xun X, Bennett D, Meeker J, Morello-Frosch R, Sathyanarayana S Environ Int. 2024; 195:109227.

PMID: 39740267 PMC: 11826381. DOI: 10.1016/j.envint.2024.109227.

A descriptive examination of rurality in the Environmental influences on Child Health Outcomes Cohort: Implications, illustrations, and future directions.

McCormack L, MacKenzie D, Deutsch A, Beene D, Hockett C, Ziegler K J Rural Health. 2024; 41(1):e12908.

PMID: 39731317 PMC: 11702867. DOI: 10.1111/jrh.12908.

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