The midwife, the coincidence, and the hypothesis.

Development of the hypothesis that adverse conditions in utero and during infancy increase the risk of cardiovascular disease in later life required epidemiological studies of a kind never undertaken before. It was necessary to find records of birth weight and living conditions during infancy for people born at least 60 years ago and to link these to their current cardiovascular health. After a search lasting several years, a large collection of records came to light in Hertfordshire. The existence of this collection was due to the foresight of one midwife, Ethel Margaret Burnside. Getting access to the records, however, was down to a fortunate coincidence, and the subsequent research probably would not be possible today.