Aging & geriatrics

The world's population is aging, and many well-informed and demanding U.S. baby boomers are entering their golden years. So it's only fitting that much of the research at Group Health Research Institute (GHRI) contributes to helping seniors to lead healthier lives.

"Research on aging cuts across virtually everything the Institute does," said Eric B. Larson, MD, MPH, the senior investigator who directs GHRI. This includes studies of older women's health, mental health issues in the elderly, and controlling cancers and chronic illnesses that become more common with age. The widely cited Chronic Care Model, developed at GHRI's MacColl Center for Health Care Innovation, is now the leading care design model for older people with chronic disease.

In addition, the Institute hosts several long-running cohort studies, including the Seattle Longitudinal Study, begun in the early 1950s, and the University of Washington (UW)/Group Health Alzheimer's Disease Patient Registry (ADPR)/Adult Changes in Thought (ACT) study. The ADPR/ACT study, funded since 1986, now focuses on finding ways to delay or prevent Alzheimer's disease, related dementias, and cognitive decline. It has generated many related studies, currently including neuropathology, genomics, mild cognitive impairment and insulin resistance, and clinical trials to improve sleep. It also has been focusing on the "upside" of aging—so-called successful aging.

"We've learned about what our research subjects value as they age," Larson said. "And we hope to apply that to our research to help them find the best solutions to have a positive experience with aging—promoting their independence and providing them with skills to cope with any problems that may occur."

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GHRI researchers in aging & geriatrics

Affiliate researchers

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Recent publications on aging & geriatrics

2010

Dublin S, Walker RL, Jackson ML, Nelson JC, Weiss NS, Jackson LA. Use of proton pump inhibitors and H2 blockers and risk of pneumonia in older adults: a population-based case-control study. Pharmacoepidemiol Drug Saf. 2010 Aug;19(8):792-802. Epub 2010 Jul 7. PubMed

Ehlenbach WJ, Hough CL, Crane PK, Haneuse SJ, Carson SS, Curtis JR, Larson EB. Association between acute care and critical illness hospitalization and cognitive function in older adults. JAMA. 2010;303(8):763-70. PubMed

Li G, Shofer JB, Rhew IC, Kukull WA, Peskind ER, McCormick W, Bowen JD, Schellenberg GD, Crane PK, Breitner JC, Larson EB. Age-varying association between statin use and incident Alzheimer's disease. J Am Geriatr Soc. 2010 Jun 1 [Epub ahead of print]. PubMed

Ludman EJ, Fullerton SM, Spangler L, Trinidad SB, Fujii MM, Jarvik GP, Larson EB, Burke W. Glad you asked: participants' opinions of re-consent for dbGap data submission. J Empir Res Hum Res Ethics. 2010 Sep;5(3):9-16. PubMed

2009

Breitner JC, Haneuse SJ, Walker R, Dublin S, Crane PK, Gray SL, Larson EB. Risk of dementia and AD with prior exposure to NSAIDs in an elderly community-based cohort. Neurology. 2009 Jun 2;72(22):1899-905. Epub 2009 Apr 22. PubMed

Dublin S, Jackson ML, Nelson JC, Weiss NS, Larson EB, Jackson LA. Statin use and risk of community acquired pneumonia in older people: population based case-control study. BMJ. 2009 Jun 16;338:b2137. DOI: 10.1136/bmj.b2137. PubMed

Larson EB. Evidence, guidelines, performance incentives, complexity, and old people: a clinician's dilemma. J Am Geriatr Soc. 2009;57(2):353-4. PubMed
Montine TJ, Larson EB. Late-life dementias: does this unyielding global challenge require a broader view? JAMA. 2009;302(23):2593-4. PubMed

2008

Jackson ML, Nelson JC, Weiss NS, Neuzil KM, Barlow W, Jackson LA. Influenza vaccination and risk of community-acquired pneumonia in immunocompetent elderly people: a population-based, nested case-control study. Lancet. 2008;372(9636):398-405. PubMed

Larson EB. Physical activity for older adults at risk for Alzheimer disease. JAMA. 2008;300(9):1077-9. PubMed 

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Our major research interests

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