About

Dr. Matthew A. Davis is a health services researcher with additional training in data science, affiliated with the University of Michigan School of Nursing. His program of research evaluates the complex relationships between healthcare service availability, using geospatial information systems methods, and healthcare outcomes among the population of older adults living with dementia. He has been continually funded by the NIH since 2010 as a principal investigator and has published more than 90 scientific articles. His current research investigates variation in the identification of dementia and the population health impacts of severe weather exposure. Dr. Davis serves as the lead of the Research Resources Core of the University of Michigan’s Center to Accelerate Population Research in Alzheimer’s (CAPRA) and co-lead of the Research Data Analytics Core for the Michigan Embedded LHS Scientist Training and Research (MEL-STaR) Center. His teaching includes courses on applied biostatistics, health data analysis, and epidemiology, with a focus on data management and analysis of national health data. He has received numerous awards, including the University of Michigan Henry Russel Award and the Mae Edna Doyle Teacher of the Year Award, and holds a PhD from Dartmouth College, an MPH from Dartmouth Medical School, a DC from New York Chiropractic College, and a BA from Colby College.

Research topics

• Anesthesia
• Internal medicine
• Surgery
• Medicine

Selected publications

• What about the hands? Older adults’ attitudes and perceptions of hand function

  Geriatric Nursing · 2026-01-21 · 1 citations

  article
  PublisherDOI

• The Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Registered Nurse Employment Across Settings

  Medical Care · 2026-02-04

  articleSenior authorCorresponding

  BACKGROUND: It is unknown whether the stress of the COVID-19 pandemic, which had a particular impact on inpatient and long-term care (LTC) nurses, had an effect on nurses' choice of employment settings. OBJECTIVE: Determine whether the COVID-19 pandemic contributed to changes in nurses' choice of employment setting. METHODS: This study used data from the 2018 and 2022 National Sample Survey of Registered Nurses to conduct a difference-in-difference analysis. We constructed a state-level measure of COVID-19 caseload, defined as COVID-19 cases per hospital bed; High versus Low COVID-19 states were defined as those above versus below the median, respectively. Logistic regression models were used to estimate the effect of exposure to High COVID-19 caseload (vs. Low) and time (2022 vs. 2018) on nurse employment choices across inpatient, LTC, outpatient, and nonclinical settings. RESULTS: From 2018 to 2022, the size of the US nursing workforce grew from 3.27 to 3.57 million nurses; however, RN FTEs increased in outpatient settings and decreased in all other settings. In adjusted analyses, nurses were less likely to work in LTC settings in 2022 than in 2018; yet, those exposed to High COVID-19 caseloads were 0.9% (95% CI: 0.3-1.5) more likely to work in LTC than those exposed to Low COVID-19 caseloads. Differences between High versus Low COVID-19 caseload exposure were not statistically significant for the likelihood of working in inpatient, outpatient, and nonclinical settings. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings suggest that exposure to High COVID-19 caseload was not associated with changes in nurses' employment settings.

  PublisherDOI

• Metabolically unhealthy adipose tissue is characterized by reductions in mitochondrial size and function

  Obesity · 2025-02-13 · 1 citations

  articleOpen access

  OBJECTIVE: Adipose function, not mass, underpins metabolic health. Lean and obese nonhuman primates (NHPs) naturally develop metabolic syndrome. Mitochondria-related measures in subcutaneous adipose tissue (SQ AT) and peripheral blood mononuclear cells may elucidate differences that transcend adiposity measures. METHODS: Obesity statuses ranged from very lean to severely obese (<9%->50%, n = 44), which were equivalent in healthy or unhealthy NHPs (metabolic syndrome score difference, p < 0.001). We evaluated SQ AT histology, electron microscopy, tissue proteins, and bioenergetics. RESULTS: Unhealthy adipocytes had mitochondria one-half the size of healthy adipocytes (p < 0.01), whereas adipocyte cell sizes were comparable. Consistent with small mitochondria, we saw deficiencies in mitochondrial fusion and quality-control proteins in SQ AT from unhealthy NHPs (all p < 0.05). Smaller mitochondria in unhealthy adipocytes were consistent with low SQ AT tissue respiration (p < 0.05). Mitochondrial size was specifically reduced with unhealthiness, as mitochondrial abundance, size, and related metrics were unrelated to adiposity. Isolated stromal vascular cells showed comparable respirometry profiles, substantiating specificity of adipocyte-related mitochondrial defects. Peripheral blood mononuclear cell bioenergetic indices were increased in unhealthy NHPs, indicative of immune cell activation, and correlated to SQ AT inflammatory cytokines. CONCLUSIONS: We conclude that targeting mitochondrial fusion processes would be a rational strategy to improve metabolic health, independent of total fat mass.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Impact of removing liposomal bupivacaine from a health system formulary on length of stay: an observational study in video-assisted thoracoscopic wedge resection

  Regional Anesthesia & Pain Medicine · 2025-12-04 · 2 citations

  articleSenior author

  Hospital length of stay (LOS) is an important endpoint in healthcare quality research as it is a composite measure of patient recovery, associated with complications (and readmissions), and a significant driver of healthcare expenditures.[1][1] Currently, value-based controversy surrounds the use of

  PublisherDOI

• Variation in One‐Year Mortality Following Severe Weather Exposure Among Older Americans by Chronic Health Condition and Sociodemographic Status

  Journal of the American Geriatrics Society · 2025-12-16

  articleOpen accessSenior author

  BACKGROUND: While the immediate effect of exposure to severe weather from hurricanes on mortality is well documented, it is unknown whether mortality in the year following exposure to severe weather differs across older Americans with specific vulnerable characteristics. This paper sought to determine whether the association between exposure to high rain and one-year mortality differs across vulnerable subgroups of older adults. METHODS: This retrospective cohort study used Medicare claims data from fee-for-service beneficiaries aged ≥ 65 in Texas and Louisiana in the year before and after Hurricane Harvey. Historical weather data was used to construct a 4-day measure of cumulative rainfall, the primary severe weather caused by Hurricane Harvey. We identified vulnerable subgroups based on five chronic health conditions requiring regular healthcare access, and sociodemographic factors (e.g., ≥ 85 years, dual eligibility). Cox proportional hazards regression was used to adjust for covariates when estimating the association between high rain exposure and mortality up to 1 year after exposure. RESULTS: In adjusted models, high rain exposure was significantly associated with greater mortality risk (HR 1.03, 95% CI 1.01-1.05). Among those with chronic health conditions including Alzheimer's disease and related dementias (ADRD) (HR 1.05 [95% CI 1.03, 1.08]), diabetes (HR 1.04 [1.02, 1.07]), and chronic kidney disease (HR 1.04 [1.01, 1.06]) exposed to high rain versus those unexposed to high rain, associations with high rain were found. Higher mortality was also observed among Non-Hispanic Black (HR 1.06 [95% CI 1.01, 1.11]) and Hispanic and Latino populations (HR 1.13 [95% CI 1.08, 1.19]). CONCLUSION: Exposure to high rain from Hurricane Harvey was associated with higher one-year mortality that varied across vulnerable groups. The largest associations were observed among older adults with health conditions that require regular healthcare (e.g., CKD, ADRD) and minoritized racial and ethnic groups.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• A global model of malaria climate sensitivity: Comparing malaria response to historic climate data based on simulation and officially reported malaria incidence

  UNC Libraries · 2024-03-28

  articleOpen access

  Background: The role of the Anopheles vector in malaria transmission and the effect of climate on Anopheles populations are well established. Models of the impact of climate change on the global malaria burden now have access to high-resolution climate data, but malaria surveillance data tends to be less precise, making model calibration problematic. Measurement of malaria response to fluctuations in climate variables offers a way to address these difficulties. Given the demonstrated sensitivity of malaria transmission to vector capacity, this work tests response functions to fluctuations in land surface temperature and precipitation. Methods. This study of regional sensitivity of malaria incidence to year-to-year climate variations used an extended Macdonald Ross compartmental disease model (to compute malaria incidence) built on top of a global Anopheles vector capacity model (based on 10years of satellite climate data). The predicted incidence was compared with estimates from the World Health Organization and the Malaria Atlas. The models and denominator data used are freely available through the Eclipse Foundations Spatiotemporal Epidemiological Modeller (STEM). Results: Although the absolute scale factor relating reported malaria to absolute incidence is uncertain, there is a positive correlation between predicted and reported year-to-year variation in malaria burden with an averaged root mean square (RMS) error of 25% comparing normalized incidence across 86 countries. Based on this, the proposed measure of sensitivity of malaria to variations in climate variables indicates locations where malaria is most likely to increase or decrease in response to specific climate factors. Bootstrapping measures the increased uncertainty in predicting malaria sensitivity when reporting is restricted to national level and an annual basis. Results indicate a potential 20x improvement in accuracy if data were available at the level ISO 3166-2 national subdivisions and with monthly time sampling. Conclusions: The high spatial resolution possible with state-of-the-art numerical models can identify regions most likely to require intervention due to climate changes. Higher-resolution surveillance data can provide a better understanding of how climate fluctuations affect malaria incidence and improve predictions. An open-source modelling framework, such as STEM, can be a valuable tool for the scientific community and provide a collaborative platform for developing such models.

  PublisherDOI

• EP092 How effective is peer review? Measuring the association between reviewer rating scores, publication status, and article impact

  2024-09-01

  articleOpen access

  <h3></h3> <b>Please confirm that an ethics committee approval has been applied for or granted:</b> Not relevant <h3>Background and Aims</h3> Peer-review represents a cornerstone of the scientific process, yet few studies have evaluated its effectiveness to predict scientific impact. The objective of this study is to assess the effectiveness of peer-review on measures of impact for manuscripts submitted for publication. <h3>Methods</h3> We analyzed all submitted manuscripts with abstracts (3,327) to Regional Anesthesia &amp; Pain Medicine (RAPM) between August 2018 and October 2021. Initially, we categorized each article by topic, type, acceptance status, author demographics, and open-access status via a double-review process. Articles were scored based on the initial peer review recommendation. With any reviewer from RAPM designating the ‘reject’ classification, we further investigated if the article was published in any indexed journal comparing total citations. The primary outcome was measured via the number of citations each article had on ClarivateTM within the last two years; the number of citations from Google Scholar was also collected, along with the Altmetric score. <h3>Results</h3> Out of 424 articles that met our inclusion criteria for analysis, we found no significant correlation between the number of Clarivate 2-year review citations and reviewer rating score (r=0.042, p=0.47), Google Scholar citations (p=0.42) or Altmetrics (p=0.70). There was no significant difference in two-year Clarivate citations between accepted (mean 7.48, SD 8.80) and rejected manuscripts (mean 5.51, SD 5.02; p=0.39). Altmetric score was significantly higher for RAPM-published papers compared to RAPM-rejected ones (mean 24.04, 63.93 vs. 2.55, 4.96; p&lt;0.001). <h3>Conclusions</h3> The ratings from peer review did not correlate with citation counts, leaving uncertain their influence on quality and other measures.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Racial/Ethnic Differences in Self-Reported Upper Limb Limitations Among U.S. Older Adults

  The Journals of Gerontology Series A · 2024-04-20 · 5 citations

  articleOpen access

  BACKGROUND: The development of disability related to activities of daily living (ADL) is of great concern in the aging population, particularly for Hispanic and Non-Hispanic (NH) Black older adults, where disability prevalence is greater compared to NH Whites. ADL-disability is typically measured across many functional tasks without differentiating upper- versus lower-limb limitations, hindering our understanding of disability burden. Despite the importance of the upper limbs for completing ADL and known age-related declines in function, racial/ethnic differences in upper limb function remain largely unknown. METHODS: We identified 4 292 NH White, NH Black, and Mexican American older adults (≥65) from the 2011-2018 waves of the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). We classified participants as having a limitation based on their ability to complete 5 upper-limb tasks (preparing meals, eating, dressing, reaching overhead, and grasping small objects) and compared limitation rates across racial/ethnic groups. RESULTS: Compared to NH Whites, NH Black older adults had significantly greater odds of reporting difficulties preparing meals (odds ratio [OR]: 1.36, 95% confidence interval [95% CI]: 1.01, 1.86) and dressing (OR: 1.55, 95% CI: 1.19, 2.02), while Mexican Americans had greater difficulty preparing meals (OR: 1.70, 95% CI: 1.12, 2.58), dressing (OR: 1.63, 95% CI: 1.12, 2.36), and grasping small objects (OR: 1.48, 95% CI: 1.06, 2.07). CONCLUSIONS: Our results demonstrate differences in self-reported upper limb ADL-disability across racial/ethnic groups, particularly for Mexican American older adults. Such findings underscore the need for routine monitoring of upper limb function throughout adulthood to identify limitations and target therapeutic interventions before independence is compromised.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• In reply: Epidural analgesia after surgery – time to review the gold standard?

  Regional Anesthesia & Pain Medicine · 2024-05-20

  letterSenior author

  We would like to thank Spann and colleagues for their interest in our paper.[1 2][1] Their major criticism of our work is the possibility of unmeasured confounders that perhaps would impact on the relationship between epidural analgesia and our primary outcome of length of stay. Additionally, they

  PublisherDOI

• Regional variation in diagnostic intensity of dementia among older U.S. adults: An observational study

  Alzheimer s & Dementia · 2024-08-16 · 19 citations

  articleOpen accessSenior author

  INTRODUCTION: Geographic variation in diagnosed cases of Alzheimer's disease and related dementias (ADRD) could be due to underlying population risk or differences in intensity of new case identification. Areas with low ADRD diagnostic intensity could be targeted for additional surveillance efforts. METHODS: Medicare claims were used for a cohort of older adults across hospital referral regions (HRRs). ADRD-specific regional diagnosis intensity was measured as the ratio of expected new ADRD cases (estimated using population demographics, risk factors, and practice intensity) compared to observed ADRD-diagnosed cases. RESULTS: Crude new ADRD diagnosis rate ranged from 1.7 to 5.4 per 100 across HRRs. ADRD-specific diagnosis intensity ranged from 0.69 to 1.47 and varied most for Black, Hispanic, and the youngest (66-74) subgroups. Across all subgroups, ADRD diagnosis intensity was associated with 2-fold difference in receiving an ADRD diagnosis. DISCUSSION: Where one resides influences the likelihood of receiving an ADRD diagnosis, particularly among those 66-74 years of age and minoritized groups. HIGHLIGHTS: Rate of new Alzheimer's disease and related dementias (ADRD) case identification varies geographically across the United States. Variation in case identification is greatest in Black, Hispanic, and young-old groups. Intensity of diagnosis (ie, case identification) unrelated to population risk differs across place. Likelihood of receiving an ADRD diagnosis varies 2-fold based on place of residence.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

Recent grants

• NIH Grant R37AG005284

  NIH · $2.3M · 2000

• NIH Grant R01AG005284

  NIH · $645k · 1989

• NIH Grant K01AT006162

  NIH · $706k · 2015

• THE AVAILABILITY OF CHIROPRACTIC CARE AND USE OF HEALTH SERVICES FOR BACK PAIN

  NIH · $1.4M · 2015–2020

Frequent coauthors

• Lawrence L. Rudel

  Wake Forest University

  110 shared

• Martha D. Wilson

  60 shared

• J. Mark Brown

  Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine

  47 shared

• Janet K. Sawyer

  Wake Forest University

  44 shared

• Kathryn L. Kelley

  University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

  44 shared

• Hiroshi Tomoda

  36 shared

• Julie Bynum

  University of Michigan–Ann Arbor

  32 shared

• Paolo Parini

  Karolinska Institutet

  31 shared

Labs

• University of Michigan Center to Accelerate Population Research in Alzheimer’s (CAPRA)PI

Education

• PhD, Quantitative Biomedical Sciences, Biomedical Sciences

  Dartmouth College

• Master's of Public Health, Public Health

  Dartmouth College Geisel School of Medicine

  2010

• Doctor of Chiropractic Care, Summa cum laude, Chiropractic

  New York Chiropractic College

  2004

• Bachelor of Arts, Chemistry, biochemistry, & molecular biology with honors, Magna cum laude

  Colby College

  2000

Awards & honors

• University of Michigan Henry Russel Award (2021)
• Mae Edna Doyle Teacher of the Year Award (2019)
• NIH External Loan Repayment Program Recipient (2012 - 2015)
• ACCRAC Outstanding research paper award (2010 and 2011)
• The Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy and Clinical Pract…