Combining multiple aging datasets to map how health and care needs change with age

Advanced Development and Utilization of Assembled Aging Trajectory Files from Multiple Datasets

NIH-funded research Rutgers Biomedical and Health Sciences · NIH-11189785

This project brings together many existing health datasets to map how older adults' health, daily functioning, and care needs change over time, including people with Alzheimer's, HIV, and other chronic conditions.

Quick facts

Grant typeNIH-funded research
Study typeNIH-funded research
Funding institutionRutgers Biomedical and Health Sciences NIH-funded
Lab location1 site (Newark, UNITED STATES)
Project IDNIH-11189785 on NIH RePORTER

What this research studies

As a patient, this project would combine many existing health records, surveys, and research datasets about older adults' daily activities, medical conditions, and care settings. The team will harmonize and merge those datasets into a single repository and build matched comparison groups (for example, people with Alzheimer's or HIV and similar controls). They will use modern statistical methods to identify common patterns in how physical function, geriatric syndromes, and care settings change over time and link those patterns to factors like air pollution, neighborhood conditions, and health care system characteristics. The goal is to create tools researchers can use to better understand late-life changes and plan more appropriate care.

Who could benefit from this research

Good fit: Ideal candidates are older adults living with chronic conditions (such as Alzheimer's disease and related dementias, HIV, heart failure, diabetes, or end-stage renal disease) whose existing health records or survey data are included in the source datasets.

Not a fit: People without records in the assembled datasets or those with conditions not represented in the source data are unlikely to see direct benefits from this specific project.

Why it matters

Potential benefit: If successful, the work could help clinicians and policymakers predict care needs and design better supports and services for older adults with chronic conditions.

How similar studies have performed: Pooling and harmonizing cohort data has produced useful findings before, but assembling multiple aging-trajectory datasets together with new analytic tools is a relatively novel and more comprehensive effort.

Where this research is happening

Newark, UNITED STATES

Researchers

About this research

  1. This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
  2. Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
  3. For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.
Conditions Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome VirusAcquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome Virus
Last reviewed 2026-06-13 by the Find a Trial editorial team. Information on this page is for educational purposes and is not medical advice. Always consult qualified healthcare professionals about clinical trial participation.