Associate Professor of Medicine
Staff Physician (SFVAMC)

Contact Information

Office Address:
4150 Clement Street  
Bldg. 1, 2nd Floor
UCSF Box VA-181G
San Francisco, CA 94121

Phone: 415-221-4810 x3052
Fax: 415-750-6641
Email: Louise.Walter@ucsf.edu

Click here to download Curriculum Vitae (pdf)

Areas of Specialization/Research Interests

Cancer screening and prevention in older persons

Prognosis

Quality of care

Outcomes in frail older persons

Selected Publications/Presentations

1. Walter LC, Covinsky KE. Cancer screening in elderly patients: a framework for individualized decision making. JAMA 2001;285:2750-2756.

2. Walter LC, Brand RJ, Counsell SR, Palmer RM, Landefeld CS, Fortinsky RH, Covinsky KE. Development and validation of a prognostic index for 1-year mortality in older adults after hospitalization. JAMA 2001;285:2987-2994.

3. Walter LC, Eng C, Covinsky KE. Screening mammography for frail older women: what are the burdens? J Gen Intern Med. 2001;16:779-784.

4. Walter LC, DeGarmo P, Covinsky KE. Older age and female sex are associated with inadequate reach of screening flexible sigmoidoscopy. Am J Medicine 2004;116:174-178.

5. Walter LC, Lindquist K, Covinsky KE. Relationship between health status and use of screening mammography and Papanicolaou smears among women older than 70 years of age. Ann Intern Med. 2004;140:681-688.

6. Walter LC, Davidowitz NP, Heineken PA, Covinsky KE. Pitfalls of converting practice guidelines into quality measures: lessons learned from a VA performance measure. JAMA 2004; 291:2466-2470.

7. Walter LC, Lewis CL, Barton MB. Colorectal, breast, and cervical cancer screening in the elderly: a review of the evidence. Am J Med. 2005;118:1078-1086.

8. Walter LC, Lindquist K, O’Hare AM, Johansen KL. Targeting screening mammography according to life expectancy among women undergoing dialysis. Arch Intern Med. 2006;166:1203-1208.

9. Walter LC, Bertenthal D, Lindquist K, Konety BR. PSA screening among elderly men with limited life expectancies. JAMA 2006;296:2336-2342.

10. Williams BA, Lindquist K, Sudore RL, Covinsky KE, Walter LC.  Screening mammography in older women: effect of wealth and prognosis. Arch Intern Med. 2008;168:514-520.