Balance disorders are prevalent in older adults, impacting physical functioning and quality of life and ultimately leading to a loss of independence. In spite of recent research, much remains unknown about the causes, management, and prevention of balance disorders. To address these gaps in knowledge requires a united effort of established investigators from multiple disciplines with complementary expertise as would be afforded by a Claude D. Pepper Older Adults Independence Center (OAIC) at the University of Pittsburgh. However, data and analysis services supporting these investigators have been widely dispersed and to date no single central resource of expertise has evolved. As one of the five shared research cores proposed for an OAIC at the University of Pittsburgh, the Data Management and Analysis Core (DMAC) will provide centralized services to a cadre of investigators conducting translational intervention and mechanistic research in older adults with balance disorders. Functioning as a data-processing center, the DMAC will offer expert consultations on research methodology, measurement adaptation and evaluation, form design, data management and analysis to investigators preparing grant applications for funding. Direct support for form design, data entry and management, and analysis will be provided to research investigators through the funding from pilot studies and externally funded projects. Through the centralized and integrated resources of this Core, the OAIC will achieve an economy of scale in the areas of form design, data management and analysis. The congruity of data management methods employed will diminish the likely loss of efficiency due to staff turnover. Project initiation and training time will be lessened and data quality will be enhanced. Data will be archived in repositories on secured database servers accessible to investigators via a local area network. Through these repositories, secondary analyses, pooled data analyses, meta-analyses, and hypothesis generation via data mining may readily occur. Both quantitative and qualitative methods and analysis as well as methodologic triangulation will be supported, allowing for a fuller understanding of balance disorders and their contributors. Training of researchers and their staff on form design, screening, management and analysis, and study monitoring will be conducted to aid research development and conduct. Members of the DMAC will participate in training activities for OAIC trainees and investigators including seminars and workshops and serve as mentors to trainees. Research dissemination will be promoted via collaboration with DMAC members on publications and presentations. Methodologic work on issues unique to the management and analysis of data collected to address balance disorders in the aged will also be fostered.
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