Inside Science Archives - Page 2 of 4

An older fluffy dog with mostly white fur on a round muzzle is sitting in a grassy yard

Scientific Results: Analysis of 2,570 responses to Dog Aging Project End of Life Survey demonstrates that euthanasia is associated with cause of death but not age

Published on January 29, 2024

Euthanasia is a common manner of death for dogs in the United States. We wanted to find out what factors led owners to make the decision to euthanize their dog. Was it disease or illness? Poor prognosis? Was the dog suffering? Was it a poor quality of life?

A graphic of different data points with paw prints on it, with one Dog Aging Project point with a dog with its paw up looking at the scattered data

Standing out from the crowd: What makes the Dog Aging Project unique?

Published on October 24, 2023

At its core, the Dog Aging Project is a long-term, longitudinal study looking at aging…

a veterinarian in black scrubs holding a clipboard showing a patient and their dog information

Inside TRIAD: Introducing the Test of Rapamycin in Aging Dogs

Published on September 20, 2023

Many of the insights the Dog Aging Project gathers are through its surveys and activities; however, we also gain valuable information from the veterinary electronic medical records (VEMRs) that we receive. Submission of a VEMR is not necessary to enroll in the Dog Aging Project longitudinal observational study, but some of our smaller cohorts like Precision and TRIAD do require eligible VEMRs for consideration.

A small terrier dog is walking up a carpeted set of stairs

Scientific Results: Big data from small animals: integrating multi-level environmental data into the Dog Aging Project

Published on August 14, 2023

This paper describes the infrastructure developed by the Dog Aging Project to integrate and analyze environmental data with the goal of understanding how these factors can affect the health of dogs. Within the Dog Aging Project, data has been collected from dogs’ homes, yards, and neighborhoods. These data can be combined with health information, including medical records, behavioral surveys, genetics, and other biological data, to investigate contextual determinants of health and interactions between contextual and individual-level factors.

a close-up of an older beagle going out for a walk by a person wearing khaki

Scientific Results: A review of frailty instruments in human medicine and proposal of a frailty instrument for dogs

Published on August 14, 2023

This paper is about frailty – a complex syndrome associated with aging that has become important in human healthcare and research. When humans experience loss of emotional and physical reserves, they are less able to bounce back from stressors. Frailty, even more than chronological age, is associated with increased risk of negative health outcomes and death. There are many different ways to measure or determine frailty in humans, and this paper gives a brief review of frailty in human medicine and research. Assessing frailty is important because while we cannot reverse chronological age, we can intervene to reduce or even reverse frailty. And hopefully, this will be true for dogs as well.

a black dog lying its head on top of its owner's laptop while a set of hands is working on the laptop

Scientific Results: Development and Validation of a Novel Instrument to Capture Companion Dog Mortality Data: The Dog Aging Project End of Life Survey

Published on May 25, 2023

This manuscript details the creation, development, and validation of the End of Life Survey (EOLS), which is used to obtain information about Dog Aging Project participating dogs who have died by gathering the information directly from dog owners.

Canine Cognition: Introducing the Brain Health Study

Published on April 20, 2023

The Brain Health Study is a nationwide study funded by the National Institute on Aging, a part of the National Institutes of Health, and is being conducted in collaboration with the Cornell University Veterinary Biobank to investigate the potential links between Alzheimer’s disease and a similar condition in dogs called canine cognitive dysfunction (CCD). CCD is a behavioral syndrome in older dogs that is defined by the development of symptoms similar to those observed in Alzheimer’s patients. This may include confusion, shifts in overall demeanor, or other changes in behavior that can dramatically affect our dogs’ quality of life. CCD may be as prevalent as 35% in dogs older than age eight.

Two women in lab coats and blue gloves smiling at the camera, one lady is sitting at the desk working on a laptop, and the other is standing next to a laboratory machine

Scientific Results: Purpose, Partnership, and Possibilities: The Implementation of the Dog Aging Project Biobank

Published on February 24, 2023

In this paper, we describe the partnership between the Dog Aging Project and the Cornell Veterinary Biobank (CVB) at the Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine to create the Dog Aging Project Biobank, a resource that stores and distributes biospecimens collected from Precision and TRIAD cohort participants.

a black puppy with its paws on a laptop in an office setting

Scientific Results: Development and evaluation of a survey instrument to assess veterinary medical record suitability for multi-center research studies

Published on August 23, 2022

In this paper, we describe how the Dog Aging Project developed, assessed, and refined our veterinary electronic medical records (VEMR) evaluation process. Two sequential studies were completed to determine what screening criteria could be used to determine if an uploaded VEMR was both a true medical record and was suitable for research analysis.

a set of hands with red nail polish typing on a laptop with a stethoscope right next to the laptop

Inside Science: Characteristics of Scientifically Useful Veterinary Electronic Medical Records

Published on August 8, 2022

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