Ayten ÜstündağView profile
Associate Professor
Ayten Üstündağ is an Associate Professor at Trakya University Faculty of Medicine, Department of Geriatrics, specializing in geriatric syndromes, nephrology, and diabetes complications. Her research bridges aging physiology, sleep disorders, and metabolic health in elderly populations. Education: Bachelor's Degree (2000) Master's Degree (2007) Doctoral Degree (2014) Her primary research focuses on geriatric syndromes , particularly the interplay between sarcopenia , sleep architecture , and cognitive decline in aging. Recent work examines how vascular remodeling, nutritional status, and circadian rhythms modulate frailty progression. She employs advanced methodologies including Mendelian randomization and community-based cohort studies across Turkey and international collaborations. Analysis of her 15 most recent publications (2020-2025) reveals a dominant trend in sleep-aging interactions , with 60% of articles investigating sleep disorders' role in sarcopenia, cognitive impairment, and metabolic dysfunction. Subfields consistently include vascular aging, gut microbiome interactions, and geriatric assessment tools, reflecting her systems-based approach to elderly health. Scientific Recognition: Anadolu Böbrek Vakfı Best Poster Award (2010) for hypertension and atherosclerosis research She has led three major research projects (2013-2024) on hypertension mechanisms, vitamin D polymorphisms in diabetes, and TIMP-1 genetics in liver cirrhosis. As a referee for journals including Turkish Journal of Nephrology and Balkan Medical Journal , she contributes to scholarly quality control in nephrology and hepatology. Her editorial work includes a 2020 chapter on nutritional assessment in primary care.





