Studies have shown that bright light therapy has improved appetite,
sleep and mood in people with Alzheimers disease. Now, Brenda K. Keller,
M.D., of the University of Nebraska Medical Center plans to advance this
research by studying the effect of lighting on day-to-day activities.
The UNMC assistant professor of geriatrics and gerontology is the latest
recipient of the Vada Kinman Oldfield Alzheimers Research Fund Award,
which is given annually to an individual with a promising new idea in Alzheimers
research. The award was presented April 21, on what would have been the
93rd birthday of the late Vada Kinman Oldfield.
Alzheimers disease is one that affects all aspects of life — memory,
behavior and ability to function in ones own environment, said Dr. Keller,
who also serves as medical director of the Senior Assist Case Management.
This award will allow me to conduct research aimed at improving function
and quality of life for those with Alzheimers disease.
The award carries a $10,000 stipend. Col. Barney Oldfield established
the research fund at UNMC in 1999 in honor of his wife, who died that year
after an 11-year battle with Alzheimers disease. In addition to the $10,000
annual award, the principal of the endowment is increased by $10,000 each
year. A native of Tecumseh, Neb., Col. Oldfield has said that once a cure
for Alzheimers disease is found, the money will be redirected to battle
other disorders of old age. Col. Oldfield died on April 26 in Los Angeles
at the age of 93.
Dr. Keller said her research will test the effect of increased illumination
on the accuracy and time needed to perform day-to-day tasks in community
dwelling seniors with illness and mild dementia. She hopes her research
will help develop recommendations for the optimal lighting needed to help
the older person with Alzheimers disease maintain independence and quality
of life.
Philanthropic support, as shown by Col. Oldfield, creates opportunities
for young investigators to follow their dreams, said John Gollan, M.D.,
Ph.D., chairman of internal medicine.
This is really the era of aging research, he said, during the award
ceremony.
Clinical research also sets academic hospitals apart from other hospitals
by positively impacting the quality of patient care and teaching, he said.
Last years award recipient, Anuja Ghorpade, Ph.D., said funding from
the award, helped her develop UNMCs Rapid Autopsy Program, two manuscripts,
an National Institutes of Health grant, three abstracts and will produce
an educational video for patient families on the importance of research.
A native of Lincoln, Dr. Keller earned her medical degree from UNMC
in 1988. She also did her residency and geriatric medicine fellowship at
UNMC.
Joining Dr. Keller at the ceremony were her parents, Dwayne and Marian
Keller of Lincoln; her husband, Thomas Magnuson, M.D., UNMC psychiatry;
and their 9-year-old son, Paul. A daughter, Ellen, 7, did not attend.
Col. Oldfield was a great optimist, said Ardyce Bohlke, executive director
of Nebraskas Dollars for Scholars, a network of community-based, volunteer-operated
scholarship foundations. Even in Vadas death he recognized the importance
of hope and possibility, she said.