Art Walaszek, MD

@walaszek.art

2210 Followers 1073 Following

I am a medical educator, geriatric psychiatrist, public health researcher & book author in Madison, Wisconsin. The views expressed on this account are mine alone.

The sun sets over Lake Mendota, the Memorial Union Terrace, and Hellen C. White Hall, home to College Library, on a spring evening at the University of Wisconsin–Madison on April 16, 2026. (Photo by Taylor Wolfram / UW–Madison)
KHN and KLEK of Angine de Poitrine
X axes represent the study follow-up (in years) and the Y axes represent the Z-scores for global cognition. Note that panels use different y axis scales; this should be considered when comparing effects across groups. The dots at time 0 represent the actual study baseline (i.e., the data are not estimated by the model); the first predicted responses represent the two-month assessments, and the following predicted responses represent the annual assessments. The blue lines represent the active intervention and the red lines represent the control intervention. While brain measures are analyzed as continuous variables, they are split by median on these figures. Overall cortical thickness showed a significant moderating effect (A, B; likelihood ratio test p=0.015). Overall FA did not moderate the effect of the intervention on global cognition (C, D; likelihood ratio test p=0.139). ROI cortical thickness also showed a significant moderating effect (E, F; likelihood ratio test p=2.184x10-6).
Cat in the window. Sign on the lawn: “Beware of cat!”
The speed at which the central nervous system processes sensory information, a critical determinant of falls and type of resulting fractures, is dependent on sufficient levels of the active metabolite of 25OHD. Healthy individuals are able to make an appropriate and timely postural response to a perturbation of balance. With the slowing of central processing speed, that response, flexion at the knees and hip and extension of the arm(s), is delayed. The individual falls to the ground with the arm or arms extended to break the fall resulting in a wrist fracture. With further slowing of central processing speed, little or no postural response is generated before impacting the ground. That impact force is likely then to be directed to the femur greater trochanter, resulting in hip fracture.
In 11,287 older adults from the ASPirin in Reducing Events in the Elderly (ASPREE) cohort, healthy lifestyle behaviors were defined as Mediterranean diet, regular physical activity, moderate alcohol intake, and non-smoking. Participants with three or more favorable behaviors had a 40% lower hazard of death, dementia, or persistent physical disability, and experienced a 10% longer healthspan and a compression of morbidity.
Angine de Poitrine on vinyl
Crow walker
Breakdown of ACB score. The figure above each bar represents the percentage of total participants with the corresponding baseline ACB score. ACB: anticholinergic cognitive burden.
Kaplan-Meier curve of MBI-free survival: Maximum ACB score was used to facilitate the production of a Kaplan–Meier plot. A log rank test comparing the four groups was statistically significant (p ≤0.001). ACB: anticholinergic cognitive burden.
Antidepressant medication (defined daily doses, DDD, N06A) trajectories five years before and five years after exit from paid work (T0=exit), n = 32,849. Dashed lines represent the 95% confidence intervals
See linked PDF for text
The UWSMPH Office for Faculty Affairs & Development team includes Art Walaszek, Destiny Luchtel, Anne Stahr, Meghan Gauger, Sara Johnson, and Ryan Goos (not pictured).
Unadjusted Kaplan–Meier curves presenting the probability of being dementia-free (classified using the Expert algorithm) by quartiles of optimism among participants aged 70 or above in the Health and Retirement Study (N = 9071). Higher optimism score and quartile indicated more optimism: Q1, 6–23; Q2, 24–27; Q3, 28–32; Q4, 33–36.
Nearly half of older adults admitted from the emergency department have cognitive problems that often go unnoticed. A simple step-by-step approach—first checking delirium, then testing cognition when delirium is absent—identified patients at higher risk of functional decline and death. This strategy supports targeted care for hospitalized older adults.
Provider priorities for research in long-term care. Care interventions in SNFs are often multi-modal and could encompass components from any of these categories. This figure organizes categories of research into care interventions that are more specific (e.g., a specific medication or medical equipment), more condition-focused (e.g., infection prevention and control or disease management), or more “process of care” focused (e.g., research on models of care and staff education).
Explanation of the Medication Regimen Complexity Index (MRCI). It estimates the complexity of a patient's medication regimen based on three components: pharmaceutical dosage forms and routes, dosage frequencies, and additional instructions for use (such as breaking tablets). The total MRCI score is the sum of the subscores on these three components for each medication. The table only shows a selection of the weightings; the full tool can be found in the article by George et al. [12]. In the component form and route, each dosage form present in the regimen is only weighted once. The minimum MRCI score is 1.5, representing one tablet or capsule taken once daily as required; there is no maximum, as the score rises with the number of medications. Higher MRCI scores correspond to a higher complexity of medication use.
Ishikawa diagram outlining the identified major medication-related themes (in blue), one user-related theme (light blue), and subcategories. The subcategories could have a positive (+) or negative (−) impact on medication use complexity, or both (+/−).
Tabby cat in a window
Evidence indicates that the amount of pTau217 in the blood increases after substantial deposition of amyloid-β (Aβ) plaques in the brain but before the appearance of substantial tau neurofibrillary tangles or the development of clinical symptoms. This suggests that pTau217 measurements could provide information on the transition from Aβ to tau pathology. Shown is a schematic illustration.
Other views of Lear's condition: Diagnoses: organic brain syndrome delirium acute hypochondriacal melancholy developing into mania acute schizophrenic-like episode personality disorder Interpretations: Lear’s “pride” & “impetuousness” as defenses against his inadequacies as a father Lear’s “narcissistic tyranny” as a defense against anxiety about aging and helplessness Lear suffers like Job and must be patient “If you stop doing the job which has been all absorbing, what are you going to do?”
What can Shakespeare teach us about aging & illness? Brief introduction to Shakespeare and his time The story of King Lear Feigned and actual madness in King Lear Lear as a case of dementia with Lewy bodies Studying the humanities as a way of understanding aging and mental illness King Lear (James Keegan) shares a tender moment with his youngest daughter, Cordelia (Alyssa Wilmoth), as they are taken away to prison. © Photo by Tommy Thompson, American Shakespeare Center.
PowerPoint slide: image of Shakespeare, superimposed with "Did King Lear have dementia? Shakespeare on aging & illness"
The impact of photographic arts on psychiatric practice: digital daily practice
“He will not be missed by a single career person,” said an FDA staffer granted anonymity to discuss Makary’s tenure prior to the news of his pending departure. “And we will only regret it when they manage to find someone worse.”
Gemini's fanciful map of the US
Book cover
Book cover: older woman on swing looking away. "Late-Life Depression & Anxiety," edited by Art Walaszek
Comparison of approvals of new molecular entities (NMEs) via 505(b)(1) and prodrugs/reformulations via 505(b)(2), 1987–2017.
Dr.Green accepting her award
JAGS Editorial Free Access Perennial Challenges With More-Than-Modest Deprescribing This article relates to: Stephen M. Thielke First published: 10 March 2026 https://doi.org/10.1111/jgs.70374Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
Longitudinal modeling of cognitive outcome (CDR-SB) over time as a function of postoperative delirium (Blue- no delirium, Red- delirium) in the cognitively unimpaired cohort (top plots, solid lines) and in the cognitively impaired subgroup (bottom plots, dotted lines). Note that higher CDR-SB indicates worsening of dementia severity rating scale, as such Y axis is inverted to show decline. Model output denoted by fit line in the graph, while observed data points are computed by averaging the outcome (CDR-SB) over subjects that experienced postoperative delirium (red) and those that did not experience delirium (blue).
NASA astronaut and Artemis II Pilot Victor Glover pictured here in the Orion spacecraft during the Artemis II lunar flyby. Glover and his fellow crewmates spent approximately seven hours taking turns at the Orion windows capturing science data to share with their team back on Earth. At closest approach, they came within 4,067 miles of the Moon’s surface. https://www.nasa.gov/blogs/missions/2026/04/10/artemis-ii-flight-day-9-second-return-correction-burn-complete/
The Artemis II crew – (clockwise from left) Mission Specialist Christina Koch, Mission Specialist Jeremy Hansen, Commander Reid Wiseman, and Pilot Victor Glover – take time out for a group hug inside the Orion spacecraft on their way home.
Book cover
Jeanne Bonnafé and Cécile Eluard in Saint-Alban, with Sculptures by Auguste Forestier, Including a Boat on the Steps Behind Them (ca. 1945). Courtesy of the American Folk Art Museum, New York.
Untitled (1935-49) by Auguste Forestier.
Psychiatrist François Tosquelle, barefoot and holding up a sculpture by psychiatric inpatient Auguste Forestier.
Black cat
Regular Research ArticleVolume 34, Issue 5p737-746May 2026Open access Mild Behavioral Impairment as a Predictor of Functional Status Natascia De Lucia, Ph.D.1 natascia.delucia@unina.it ∙ Laura Petraglia, Ph.D.2 ∙ Klara Komici, Ph.D.3 ∙ … ∙ Nelson Mauro Maldonato, Ph.D.1 ∙ Grazia Daniela Femminella, Ph.D.4 graziadaniela.femminella@unina.it For the Alzheimer’s Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI)
Network of interventions for (A) behavioral disturbance (B) mood disturbance (C) agitation (D) global cognitive function. Each node represents a different intervention. The size of each node is proportional to the total sample size for that intervention. The thickness of the connecting lines (edges) reflects the number of direct comparisons between interventions.
Bar graph of addition/loss of social workers, psychologists & psychiatrists. The losses under the new administration amount to 4% of the agency’s psychologists, 6% of psychiatrists and 3% of social workers.
Visualization of the magnitude and composition of prevalence ratios for GAD, MDE, and suicidality between 2012 and 2022 at different levels of cannabis frequency. Prevalence ratios (PRs) indicating higher prevalence are above 1; as such, all PRs in the figure start at 1 since all reflect a higher prevalence given cannabis use relative to no use (baseline bar). The effect of cannabis bar reflects the increase in prevalence attributable to cannabis frequency in 2012. The effects of year bar reflects the increase in the prevalence between survey years. The year*cannabis interaction bar reflects the increase in the prevalence attributable to cannabis in 2022 that is larger than (or ‘added’ to) effects seen in 2012.
In no particular order: Halo, Bloodborne, Sim City 2000, Stray, Power Wash Simulator, Civ V, Mario Kart DS, God of War, Hades
Tabby cat with look of curiosity
Vote in every election Never miss a chance to vote. Every election - local, state, federal. If you can vote in the US, encourage those who can. Pro Tip: ask “what’s your plan to vote?”
Shrinking medical staff: Percentage change in doctors and nurses employed at the V.A. from previous year
Album cover: white cat with heterochromia about to be pounced on by a tabby cat.
Consensus Statement Psychiatry Recommendations for the Deprescribing of Psychotropic Medications A Consensus Statement From the American Society of Clinical Psychopharmacology Task Force Joseph F. Goldberg, MD, MSc1; Roger S. McIntyre, MD2; Holly A. Swartz, MD3 et al
Kaplan–Meier survival curves for incident dementia by baseline sensory difficulty: (A) Vision difficulty, and (B) Hearing difficulty. Each survey round is separated by 1 year.
President Obama presenting Bill Foege with the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
Tabby cat in a closet
Family Medicine: Spotlight on Methods
Effect of statin versus placebo on events listed in statin SmPCs (Summaries of Product Characteristics, i.e., product labels), subdivided by component parts.
Physicians Are Not Providers: The Ethical Significance of Names in Health Care: A Policy Paper From the American College of Physicians Authors: Lois Snyder Sulmasy, JD, and Jan K. Carney, MD, MPH , for the ACP Ethics, Professionalism and Human Rights Committee