Geriatric medicine deals with aging problems and illnesses in older people. A geriatrician or geriatric physician has specific knowledge of the aging process and expert skills in the diagnosis, therapy, and prevention of diseases in the elderly. This specialist can treat geriatric patients in the patient’s home, an office, nursing home, or a hospital setting.

Physicians in this specialty treat patients suffering from numerous diseases and illnesses, but some of the most common are Osteoarthritis and osteoporosis.

To diagnose patients with possible illnesses and diseases, specialists will often perform one of many tests including Bone density test.

Doctor density varies by specialty and location. Iowa has 97 practicing geriatric medicine doctors. Broken out by city, geriatric medicine doctor density in Altoona is 1, in Ames is 4, in Anamosa is 1, in Bayard is 1, in Bedford is 1, in Belmond is 1, in Bettendorf is 3, in Bloomfield is 1, in Boone is 1, in Bussey is 1, in Carroll is 3, in Cedar Rapids is 2, in Centerville is 1, in Cherokee is 1, in Clarion is 1, in Clinton is 1, in Clive is 2, in Corning is 1, in Council Bluffs is 2, in Davenport is 1, in Des Moines is 26, in Fairfield is 1, in Fort Dodge is 1, in Glenwood is 1, in Grinnell is 1, in Harlan is 1, in Indianola is 1, in Iowa City is 14, in Keokuk is 3, in Knoxville is 1, in Lenox is 1, in Lone Tree is 6, in Madrid is 1, in Manchester is 1, in Marengo is 2, in Marshalltown is 4, in Mason City is 3, in Montezuma is 1, in Muscatine is 1, in North Liberty is 2, in Northwood is 2, in Norwalk is 1, in Ottumwa is 1, in Panora is 1, in Pella is 1, in Perry is 1, in Sibley is 1, in Sigourney is 1, in Sioux City is 3, in Slater is 1, in Strawberry Point is 1, in Sumner is 1, in Toledo is 1, in Waterloo is 2, in Waverly is 2, in West Des Moines is 3, in West Union is 1, and in Wilton is 1.

Iowa’s capital is Des Moines, home to Drake University. Iowa achieved Statehood 1846, and the state’s population is now 2,996,334. The Mississippi river borders the state on the east, and a majority of the state’s economic output is agricultural. Many cultural and entertainment opportunities exist for visitors to the “quad cities” of Davenport and Bettendorf, IA, and Rock Island and Moline, IL. Numerous museums, arts, music and sports events are available in Iowa, including the Herbert Hoover National Historic Site, the Amana Colonies, and the Buffalo Bill Cody Homestead. Famous people born in Iowa: Buffalo Bill, entertainers Johnny Carson and John Wayne, and former president Herbert Hoover.

According to 2005 Census estimates, Iowa has a population of 2,966,334. Of this population, 656,031 are under the age of 18 and 434,196 are at or above the age of 65.