Dr. Cawthon received a doctorate in epidemiology from University of California, Berkeley. Dr. Cawthon's current research interests include maintaining mobility in old age;sarcopenia (age-related muscle loss); frailty; the decline of physical function with age;and osteoporosis, particularly in older men. Dr. Cawthon has several years of experience managing large, multi-center observational studies. She also oversees the statistical Analyst Group at the Coordinating Center

Research Interests

• Maintaining mobility in old age
• The epidemiology of sarcopenia, frailty and age-related physical decline
• Translational approaches to studying sarcopenia, frailty and age-related physical decline
• Osteoporosis in men
• Vitamin D supplementation for the prevention of physical decline

Selected Publications

1. Cawthon PM, Marshall LM, Michael Y, Dam TT, Ensrud KE, Barrett-Connor E, Orwoll ES. Frailty in older men: prevalence, progression, and relationship with mortality. J Am Geriatr Soc. 2007 Aug;55(8):1216-23.
2. Cawthon PM, Fullman RL, Marshall L, Mackey DC, Fink HA, Cauley JA, Cummings SR, Orwoll ES, Ensrud KE. Physical performance and risk of hip fractures in older men. J Bone Miner Res. 2008 Jul;23(7):1037-44. PMCID: PMC2679379.
3. Cawthon PM, Fox KM, Gandra SR, Delmonico MJ, Chiou CF, Anthony MS, Sewall A, Goodpaster B, Satterfield S, Cummings SR, Harris TB. Do muscle mass, muscle density, strength, and physical function similarly influence risk of hospitalization in older adults? J Am Geriatr Soc. 2009 Aug;57(8):1411-9. PMCID: PMC3269169.
4. Cawthon PM, Parimi N, Barrett-Connor E, Laughlin GA, Ensrud KE, Hoffman AR, Shikany JM, Cauley JA, Lane NE, Bauer DC, Orwoll ES, Cummings SR. Serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D, parathyroid hormone, and mortality in older men. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2010 Oct;95(10):4625-34. PMC3050100.
5. Cawthon PM, Ewing SK, Mackey DC, Fink HA, Cummings SR, Ensurd KE, Stefanick ML, Bauer DC, Cauley JA, Orwoll ES. Change in Hip Bone Mineral Density and Risk of Subsequent Fractures in Older Men. J Bone Miner Res. 2012 Oct;27(10):2179-2188.  PMC3447117.
6. Cawthon PM, Blackwell TL, Cauley JA, Ensrud KE, Dam TT, Harrison SL, Peters KW, Mackey DM. Objective assessment of activity, energy expenditure, and functional limitations in older men: The Osteoporotic Fractures in Men Study (MrOS). J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci. 2013 Dec;68(12):1518-24. PMC3814243.
7. Cawthon PM, Lui LY, McCulloch CE, Cauley JA, Paudel ML, Taylor B, Schousboe JT, Ensrud KE. Sarcopenia and health care utilization in older women. J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci. 2017 Jan;72(1):95-101. PMCID: PMC5155659.
8. Cawthon PM, Orwoll ES, Peters KE, Ensrud KE, Cauley JA, Kado DM, Stefanick ML, Shikany JM, Strotmeyer ES, Glynn NW, Caserotti P, Shankaran M, Hellerstein M, Cummings SR, Evans WJ. Strong relation between muscle mass determined by D3-creatine dilution, physical performance and incidence of falls and mobility limitations in a prospective cohort of older men. J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci. 2019 May 16;74(6):844-852. PMCID: PMC6521914.
9. Cawthon PM, Travison TG, Manini TM, Patel S, Pencina KM, Fielding RA, Magaziner JM, Newman AB, Brown T, Kiel DP, Cummings SR, Shardell M, Guralnik JM, Woodhouse LJ, Pahor M, Binder E, D'Agostino RB, Quian-Li X, Orwoll E, Landi F, Orwig D, Schaap L, Latham NK, Hirani V, Kwok T, Pereira SL, Rooks D, Kashiwa M, Torres-Gonzalez M, Menetski JP, Correa-De-Araujo R, Bhasin S. Establishing the Link Between Lean Mass and Grip Strength Cut Points With Mobility Disability and Other Health Outcomes: Proceedings of the Sarcopenia Definition and Outcomes Consortium Conference. J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci. 2020 Jun 18;75(7):1317-1323. PMCID: PMC7447857.
10. Rogers-Soeder TS, Peters KE, Lane NE, Shikany JM, Judd S, Langsetmo L, Hoffman AR, Evans WJ, Cawthon PM. Dietary Intake, D3Cr Muscle Mass, and Appendicular Lean Mass in a Cohort of Older Men. J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci. 2020 Jun 18;75(7):1353-1361. PMCID: PMC7302171.
11. Cawthon PM, Manini T, Patel SM, Newman A, Travison T, Kiel DP, Santanasto AJ, Ensrud KE, Xue QL, Shardell M, Duchowny K, Erlandson KM, Pencina KM, Fielding RA, Magaziner J, Kwok T, Karlsson M, Ohlsson C, Mellström D, Hirani V, Ribom E, Correa-de-Araujo R, Bhasin S. Putative Cut-Points in Sarcopenia Components and Incident Adverse Health Outcomes: An SDOC Analysis. J Am Geriatr Soc. 2020 Jul;68(7):1429-1437. PMCID: PMC7508260.
12. Cawthon PM, Orwoll ES, Ensrud KE, Cauley JA, Kritchevsky SB, Cummings SR, Newman A. Assessing the Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic and Accompanying Mitigation Efforts on Older Adults. J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci. 2020 Sep 16;75(9):e123-e125. PMCID: PMC7188163.
13. Zanker J, Patel S, Blackwell T, Duchowny K, Brennan-Olsen S, Cummings SR, Evans WJ, Orwoll ES, Scott D, Vogrin S, Cauley JA, Duque G, Cawthon PM. Walking Speed and Muscle Mass Estimated by the D3-Creatine Dilution Method Are Important Components of Sarcopenia Associated With Incident Mobility Disability in Older Men: A Classification and Regression Tree Analysis. Journal of the American Medical Directors Association. 2020 Dec;21(12):1997-2002.
14. Cawthon PM, Blackwell T, Cummings SR, Orwoll ES, Duchowny KA, Kado DM, Stone KL, Ensrud KE, Cauley JA, Evans WJ. Muscle mass assessed by D3-Creatine dilution method and incident self-reported disability and mortality in a prospective observational study of community dwelling older men. The journals of gerontology. Series A, Biological sciences and medical sciences. 2021 Jan 1;76(1):123-130. PMCID: PMC7756711.