Amaia Calderon Larrañaga

About me

I am Associate Professor at the Aging Research Center (ARC) of Karolinska Institutet. I hold a degree in Pharmacy, a Master's in Public Health, and a PhD from the Department of Public Health, University of Zaragoza (Spain). Before being recruited at ARC in August 2015 and during my postdoctoral period within the EpiChron Research Group of the Aragon Health Sciences Institute (IACS) in Spain, I investigated the epidemiology of multimorbidity (e.g. patterns of diseases and geriatric conditions, polypharmacy patterns), and its impact on health systems (e.g. healthcare use, medication adherence, adverse drug events), and patients (e.g. obesity and weight loss, physical activity). I have also been part of the design of a cluster randomized trial in young-old patients with multimorbidity and polypharmacy aimed at improving physician drug prescription in the Spanish primary care (Multi-PAP project).

Research description

Since my incorporation at ARC, I have been studying health in older age shifting from the traditional focus on single diseases towards multidimensional and longitudinal health trajectories, using data from the Swedish National Study on Aging and Care (SNAC-K) of which I am vice-PI. Thanks to several grants from the Swedish Research Council for Health, Working Life and Welfare, the Swedish Research Council, and Karolinska Institutet, we investigate the environmental, behavioral and biological determinants of such trajectories, as well as the interaction of these health pathways with the use of medical and social care services needs. The proposed research aims to: (a) improve our understanding of health in old age from a person-centered perspective by considering its complexity and between- and within- individual heterogeneity and (b) provide the evidence needed by healthcare managers to deliver better care at a more appropriate time and place.

Teaching portfolio

Pedagogical activities include supervision of several PhD students, postdoctoral fellows, international guest students, master’s and undergraduate students; coordination of the biannual PhD course “Application of epidemiological methods in aging research” within the Neuroscience and Epidemiology Doctoral Programs at KI; coordination of the freestanding course "Aging and Age-Related Disorders from a Biological, Epidemiological and Clinical Perspective" at KI; and lecturing at several courses on geriatric epidemiology at the undergraduate, masters and PhD levels (Master’s in Public Health Sciences at KI and Stockholm University, Psychology Program at KI, etc.).