Stopping heart-protecting medicines for older veterans with and without Alzheimer's in nursing homes
Official title: Deprescribing Cardiovascular Medications among Persons with and without Alzheimer's Disease and Related Dementias in Long-Term Care
Funded at Palo Alto Veterans Instit for Research · NIH-11472075 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This project compares outcomes when common heart-protecting medicines like aspirin and statins are stopped versus continued for older VA nursing home residents with and without Alzheimer's disease.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Palo Alto Veterans Instit for Research NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Palo Alto, United States) |
| Project start | May 15, 2019 |
| Project end | March 31, 2029 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $83,830 |
| NIH project number | 3R01AG062568-04S1 |
| Project ID | NIH-11472075 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal candidates are veterans aged 65 or older living in VA nursing homes who are taking preventive cardiovascular medicines like aspirin or statins, including those with or without Alzheimer's disease.
✕Less likely to help
People younger than 65, non-veterans or those not living in VA nursing homes, people not taking preventive heart medicines, or patients with clear ongoing heart disease indications for continued therapy are unlikely to be included or directly benefit.
What this research studies
If you or a loved one are an older veteran living in a VA nursing home, this work looks at what happens when doctors stop preventive heart medicines such as aspirin or statins compared with continuing them. The team will use medical and pharmacy records from about 150,000 residents aged 65 and older across VA nursing homes to track hospital visits, side effects, survival, and other outcomes. Researchers will compare residents with Alzheimer's disease and related dementias to those without dementia to see who benefits or is harmed by deprescribing. The goal is to give practical information families and clinicians can use when deciding whether to stop these medicines.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: Could help doctors and families make safer, more personalized choices about stopping heart medicines for older adults, especially those with dementia.
How similar studies have gone: Only a small number of randomized deprescribing trials exist and evidence about stopping cardioprotective drugs in frail older adults is limited, so this large VA cohort is relatively novel.
Where this research is happening
-
Palo Alto Veterans Instit for Research
Palo Alto, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Liu, Christine Kee — Palo Alto Veterans Instit for Research
- Study coordinator: Liu, Christine Kee
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About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.