title: Description and cohort characterization of the Longevity Study: learning from our elders.
abstract: The purpose of this article is to describe the Longevity Study: Learning From Our Elders, a research program on healthy aging that began in 2007 at the Center for Healthy Aging at Banner Sun Health Research Institute. As of June 2015, 1139 participants (age range of 50-110 years) completed baseline assessments with the majority living in the Sun Cities retirement communities northwest of Phoenix, Arizona but expanding throughout the state. The registry includes over 830 currently active participants with 450 aged 80 years and older, 188 aged 90 and older, and 27 centenarians. Data from in-person interviews at the Center for Healthy Aging in Sun City or in the participants' residences which includes sociodemographic, medical, cognitive, physical and psychosocial variables have been collected since the study's inception. This paper outlines some of the key demographic and clinical characteristics of the Longevity Study, its progress, and future directions. It also reflects on how exceptional aging individuals function psychosocially, cognitively and physically, particularly among individuals aged 85 and older.
authors.affiliation: Center for Healthy Aging, Banner Sun Health Research Institute, Sun City, AZ, USA.
authors.forename: Kathleen
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: O'Connor
authors.affiliation: College of Nursing and Health Innovation, Arizona State University, Phoenix, AZ, USA.
authors.forename: David W
authors.initials: DW
authors.lastname: Coon
authors.affiliation: Banner Alzheimer's Institute, Phoenix, AZ, USA. michael.ahmadi@bannerhealth.com.
authors.forename: Michael
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0001-9901-3650
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Malek-Ahmadi
authors.affiliation: Center for Healthy Aging, Banner Sun Health Research Institute, Sun City, AZ, USA.|Civin Laboratory for Neuropathology, Banner Sun Health Research Institute, Sun City, AZ, USA.
authors.forename: Brittany N
authors.initials: BN
authors.lastname: Dugger
authors.affiliation: Center for Healthy Aging, Banner Sun Health Research Institute, Sun City, AZ, USA.
authors.forename: Sharon
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Schofield
authors.affiliation: Center for Healthy Aging, Banner Sun Health Research Institute, Sun City, AZ, USA.
authors.forename: Walter
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Nieri
mesh_terms: D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000375:Aging / Q000502:physiology / Q000523:psychology; D001130:Arizona / Q000453:epidemiology; D003071:Cognition; D003710:Demography; D005260:Female; D015577:Geriatric Assessment / Q000379:methods / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D005853:Geriatrics / Q000379:methods; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D008136:Longevity; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D011584:Psychology; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors
keywords: Cognition; Geriatrics; Gerontology; Longevity; Psychosocial