Gerontology
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Chronic headache is common in the elderly, but there is little specific research on the impact on quality of life of headache and beliefs about pain in this age group. This study investigated the influence of headache type as well as headache frequency (> or =15 headache days/month vs. <15 headache days/month) on quality of life and determined the relationships between elder's well-being, pain beliefs and related headache features including commonly reported neck pain. 118 headache subjects and 44 non-headache controls, aged 60-75 years, were recruited from the community. Subjects completed a headache questionnaire for classification purposes, the SF-36, the Geriatric Depression Scale-short form (GDS-S), the Survey of Pain Attitudes (SOPA-35) and the Neck Disability Index (NDI). ⋯ The NDI score had the greatest influence on physical well-being and GDS-S score on mental well-being (p < 0.001). The results suggest that frequency of headache has an impact on health-related quality of life in elders. Notably, the level of neck pain and disability is an important factor influencing well-being and may warrant attention in the management of elders with chronic headache.
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The perioperative assessment and management of elderly patients with hip fracture and significant aortic stenosis (AS) is an increasingly common clinical problem with little data available to guide perioperative management. ⋯ Our results demonstrate that elderly patients with severe AS can safely undergo repair of hip fractures with a mortality and morbidity comparable with a control population. These patients should not be denied surgery on the basis of their aortic valve disease.