A longitudinal study of the health status of a community of religious sisters: addressing the advantages, challenges, and limitations.

Longitudinal studies are recognized as contributing to understanding the complexity of aging and generating insights that cannot be gained using other research methods. However, conducting longitudinal studies is recognized as challenging, especially among older adults. The purpose of the current review is to describe how the authors addressed the limitations and challenges of longitudinal studies in a study of the health status of a community of religious sisters.