The Irish Longitudinal Study on Ageing Awarded Two New Health Research Board Grants

Posted on: 05 July 2012

Population ageing is a major challenge confronting nations worldwide and will affect the future lives of all. The Irish Longitudinal Study on Ageing (TILDA) has been established to provide a research base to address these issues. It is a large-scale, representative, internationally comparable study of the Irish population aged 50 and over. Researchers in TILDA will study the role of autonomic function in the development of cardiovascular disease in adults thereby creating new biomarkers and opportunities for intervention. Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of mortality in western cultures and a significant cause of major disabilities such as stroke and dementia. The new Health Research Board Interdisciplinary Capacity Enhancement (ICE) award for €590,000 over three years will enable applied health research and implementation science to rapidly translate policy relevant findings from the cardiovascular domain into policy and practice. Insights gained from the study may open new avenues of cardiovascular risk assessment and treatment. The research will be led by Professor Rose Anne Kenny (TCD/TILDA) with collaboration from Dr Emmer Shelley (HSE), Professor Tom Fahey (RCSI), Professor Charles Normand (TCD), Professor  Ciarán O’Neill (NUIG) and Professor Alan Barrett (TCD/TILDA).

A further population health sciences award for €339,000 over three years was made to study type 2 diabetes and its relation to cardiovascular function, cognitive function, mental health and socioeconomic factors. The burden of type 2 diabetes mellitus and its complications are immense and disproportionately affect the older population and socioeconomically disadvantaged communities. Depression and anxiety often occur together and are more common in people with diabetes.  By 2030, diabetes will have increased by 135% in the over 65 years and older worldwide. The Principal Investigator, Professor Rose Anne Kenny said: “The study will advance the science of population health by using biological and demographic data from TILDA to address several limitations in the current knowledge of diabetes and cardiovascular brain health in Ireland.” Co-applicants are Dr George Savva (TCD/TILDA), Professor  Brian Lawlor (TCD/SJH), Professor Joe Barry (TCD), Dr  Jean O’Connell (SVUH) and Dr  Siobhan Maty (TCD/TILDA).