Personal information
Dorly J.H. DeegProfessor of Epidemiology of Ageing and
Scientific Director of the Longitudinal Aging Study Amsterdam (LASA)
Short biography
By education a mathematician, Prof. Deeg has worked mainly in the areas of public health and gerontology. She prepared her doctoral thesis (1989) in the department of Public Health, Erasmus University School of Medicine, Rotterdam, in collaboration with the department of Psychogerontology, University of Nijmegen.
Since 1991, she is the scientific director of the Longitudinal Aging Study Amsterdam (LASA). In this year, she was appointed as an associate professor in the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, department of Psychiatry. Since 2001, she is a full professor of epidemiology of aging in the Institute for Research in Extramural Medicine, VU University Medical Centre.
To date, publications include studies of longevity, morbidity, functional limitations, cognitive impairment, depression, personal competence, life style, social support, and methodology. Prof. Deeg is currently supervising 10 PhD studies on various aspects of health changes and adjustment.
International experience is highlighted by the following. From December 1986 through July 1988, prof. Deeg was a visiting fellow at the U.S. National Institute on Aging, Epidemiology, Biometry and Demography Program. In 1989, she published a volume on Experiences from Longitudinal Studies of Aging, which included an inventory of 72 studies across the world, three of which were described in detail regarding conceptualisation, organisation and output.
From September 1990 through February 1991, Prof. Deeg was a visiting scholar at the Tokyo Metropolitan Institute of Gerontology, department of Community Health. Prof. Deeg is a fellow in the Gerontological Society of America, and has been a partner in two EU-funded projects: Socio-Economic differences in Healthy Ageing (SEdHA), and Comparison of Longitudinal European Studies on Ageing (CLESA). She is also involved in the European Forum on Population Ageing Research.
Job experience
Function: Scientific director of a multidisciplinary, longitudinal study (Longitudinal Aging Study Amsterdam, LASA) in collaboration with, amongst others, the Department of Sociology of the VU University.
Activities: supervision of research progress, including own research; acquisition of new (side-)studies; supervision of external users of LASA-data; data quality control; personnel and financial management; public relations; methodological consultation; teaching in Epidemiology of health and disability in older age.
25 most important publications
10 selected publications are marked with ► and the basis for selection is given
Articles in refereed scientific journals, from 2001 onwards
Penninx BWJH, Beekman ATF, Honig A, Deeg DJH, Schoevers RA, Van Eijk JTM, Van Tilburg W. Effect of depression on cardiac mortality: Results from a community-based longitudinal study. Archives of General Psychiatry 58; 2001: 221-227. IF: 11.981
Deeg DJH. Attrition in longitudinal population studies: Does it affect the generalizability of the findings? Journal of Clinical Epidemiology 55; 2002: 213-215. IF: 2.223
►Deeg DJH, Van Tilburg T, Smit JH, De Leeuw ED. Attrition in the Longitudinal Aging Study Amsterdam: The effect of differential inclusion in side studies. Journal of Clinical Epidemiology 55; 2002: 319-328. IF: 2.223
- Analyses an important methodological problem in longitudinal research
Deeg DJH, Bath PA. Self-rated health, gender, and mortality in older persons: Introduction to a special section. The Gerontologist 43; 2003: 369-371. IF: 1.518
Deeg DJH, Kriegsman DMW. Concepts of self-rated health: Specifying the gender difference in mortality risk. The Gerontologist 43; 2003: 376-386. IF: 1.518
Minicuci N, Noale M, Bardage C, Blumstein T, Deeg DJH, Gindin J, Jylhä M, Nikula S, Otero A, Pedersen NL, Pluijm SMF, Zunzunegui MV, Maggi S, for the CLESA Working Group. Cross-national determinants of quality of life from six longitudinal studies on aging: The CLESA project. Aging Clinical and Experimental Research15; 2003: 187-202. IF: 1.571
►Klinkenberg M, Willems DL, Van der Wal G, Deeg DJH. Symptom burden in the last week of life. Journal of Pain and Symptom Management 27; 2004; 5-13. IF: 1.885
- Makes use of the context of a longitudinal study to study the end of life
►Deeg DJH. Comment to Robine and Michel. Population aging: the benefit of global versus local theory. Journal of Gerontology: Medical Sciences 59A; 2004: 600. IF: 3.455
- On the role of the health care supply in population health
►Bisschop MI, Kriegsman DMW, Beekman ATF, Deeg DJH. Chronic diseases and depression: the modifying role of psychosocial resources. Social Science and Medicine 57; 2004: 187-194. IF: 1.931
- Example of method to analyse longitudinal data, and example of interdisciplinary study
►Puts MTE, Lips P, Deeg DJH. Static and dynamic measures of frailty predict decline in a performance-based and self-reported measure of physical functioning. Journal of Clinical Epidemiology 58; 2005: 1188-1198. IF: 2.538
- First published longitudinal modeling of frailty
► Melzer D, Dik MG, Van Kamp GJ, Jonker C, Deeg DJH. The APOE e4 polymorphism is strongly associated with poor mobility performance test results but not self-reported limitation in older people. Journal of Gerontology: Medical Sciences 60; 2005:
1319-1323. IF: 3.455
- Longitudinal link of genetic marker with observed physical functioning
►Deeg DJH. Longitudinal characterization of course types of functional limitations. Disability and Rehabilitation 27; 2005:
253-261. IF: 1.053
- Example of method to analyse longitudinal data
Deeg DJH, Huizink AC, Comijs HC, Smid T. Disaster and associated changes in physical and mental health in older residents. European Journal of Public Health 15; 2005: 170-174. IF: 1.481
Deeg DJH, Thomése GCF. Discrepancies between personal income and neighbourhood status: effects on physical and mental health. European Journal of Ageing 2. 2005: 98-108.
Geerlings SW, Pot AM, Twisk JWR, Deeg DJH. Predicting transitions in the use of informal and professional care by older adults. Ageing and Society 25; 2005: 111-130. IF: 0.721
Zunzunegui MV, Rodriguez-Laso A, Otero A, Pluijm SMF, Nikula S, Blumstein T, Jylhä M, Minicuci N, Deeg DJH, for the CLESA working group. Disability and social ties: comparative findings of the CLESA study. European Journal of Ageing 2, 2005: 40-47.
Deeg DJH, Wahl H-W. Expanding the frontiers of ageing research. European Journal of Ageing 3, 2006: 1-2.
►Bremmer MA, Hoogendijk WJ, Deeg DJH, Schoevers RA, Schalk BW, Beekman AT. Depression in older age is a risk factor for first ischemic cardiac events. American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry 14, 2006: 523-30. IF: 2.929
- Links longitudinal data with cause-of-death statistical data
►Visser M, Deeg DJH, Lips P, Puts M, Seidell J. Low serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D concentration of older persons and risk of nursing home admission. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 84, 2006: 616-622. IF: 5.853
- Links longitudinal data with external data on institutionalization
Comijs HC, Beekman ATF, Smit F, Bremmer M, Tilburg T van, Deeg DJH. Childhood adversity, recent life events and depression in late life. Journal of Affective Disorders 2007. [Epub ahead of print] IF: 3.078
Pluijm SMF, Visser M, Puts MTE, Dik MG, Schalk BWM, Van Schoor NM, Schaap LA, Bosscher RJ, Deeg DJH. Unhealthy lifestyles during the life course: associations with physical decline in late life. Aging Clinical and Experimental Research 19, 2007: 75-83.
IF: 1.098
Puts MTE, Shekary N, Widdershoven G, Heldens J, Lips P, Deeg DJH. What does quality of life mean to older frail and non-frail community-dwelling adults? Quality of Life Research 16, 2007: 263-277. IF: 1.915
►Zunzunegui MV, Minicuci N, Blumstein T, Noale M, Deeg D, Jylhä M, Pedersen NL; for the CLESA Working Group. Gender differences in depressive symptoms among older adults: a cross-national comparison : The CLESA project. Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology 42, 2007: 198-207. IF: 1.018
- Combines several longitudinal studies across Europe
Chapters in refereed scientific edited volumes, most recent
Deeg DJH. Aging in Europe. In: Markides KS, Blazer DG, Branch LG, Studenski S (eds). Encyclopedia of Aging and Health. Sage, 2007: 208-212.
Deeg DJH. Health and quality of life. In: Mollenkopf H & Walker A (eds), Quality of Life in Old Age – International and Multidisciplinary Perspectives. Heidelberg: Springer Verlag, 2007: 195-213.
International, professional activities
▪ Founding editor-in-chief, European Journal of Ageing: Social, Behavioural and Health Perspectives (Springer), with prof.dr. H.-W. Wahl, German Centre for Research on Ageing, Heidelberg (2004-)
▪ Member, AgeAction Social Section Panel in preparation of the interdisciplinary conference
"Changing expectations of life", Newcastle, UK, April 23, 2007 (2006-07)
▪ Member, Review Board Swedish Council for Working Life and Social Research, programme
‘Ageing and the Elderly’ (2007-)
▪ Member, Expert Panel for Cohort Studies, Swiss National Science Foundation, Division Biology and Medicine (2005-)
▪ Member, Advisory Board, European Health Monitoring Unit (EHEMU) (2005-)
National, professional activities
▪ Chair, Netherlands Society for Gerontology (2005-)
▪ Member, Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research preparatory committee for the research theme “Life course” (2004-07) ▪ Member, National Health Council Committee on Comorbidity (2005-2007)
▪ Consultant, National Expertise Centre Deafblindness, Maarn (2004-)
▪ Consultant, Regional Health Service regarding indicators for the Health Monitor Older People [Gezondheidsmonitor Ouderen] (2005-)
▪ Responsibility for the bachelor course “Trends in public health” in the curriculum Health Sciences, Vrije Universiteit (2005-)
▪ Responsibility for the master course “Health and psycho-social factors” in the curriculum Health Sciences, Vrije Universiteit (2005-)
▪ Co-responsibility for the bachelor course “Geriatrics and ageing” in the curriculum Health Sciences, Vrije Universiteit (2003-)
▪ Course ‘Frailty and admission to a long-term care institution: proactive policy.’ Boerhaave Course for nursing home physicians, 2006.
▪ Chair, quality committee Institute for Research in Extramural Medicine, VU Medical Centre, (2003-2006)
▪ Member, curatorium for the Stuyterman van Loo-chair “Social Gerontology” (Prof.dr. Nan Stevens), faculty of Social Sciences, VU (2003-)
▪ Member, Netherlands Organisation for Health Research and Development (ZonMw): Sounding Board committee ‘Opmaat: Diversity from patient perspective’ (2003-)
▪ Board member, Centre for Ageing Research (CVO), Vrije Universiteit (2001-):
▪ Board member, Dutch Foundation of Women and Health Research, 1997-
▪ Co-director of private company ARCHA b.v., gerontological and methodological consultation for field projects, 1991-
▪ Editorial board of Tijdschrift voor Gezondheidswetenschappen [Journal of Public Health/Health and Society], 1993-