Update on preoperative assessment for geriatric patients prior to elective surgery / Shelley R. McDonald, Mitchell T. Heflin

Adults aged 65 years and older in the U.S. will number 72 million or nearly 20% of the total population by 2030 with a larger proportion than ever before being over the age of 85 years.1 Older adults present unique challenges because as we are living longer than ever before, older age is also accompanied by greater disease burden. With respect to health outcomes, older adults often value maintaining independence over reductions in mortality,2 and it is well known that when an older adult becomes hospitalized that they are at a greater risk for many adverse outcomes that impede independence including longer hospitalizations,3 becoming malnourished,4 losing the ability to perform activities of daily living (ADLs),5 or being discharged to a location other than home.

Nursing