Zeitschrift für Gerontologie und Geriatrie
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There is no difference in medical and nutritional therapy between elderly and young surgical patients. However, based on the high prevalence of malnutrition or a risk for malnutrition and the associated risk for complications, elderly surgical patients should receive special attention. ⋯ Contrary to former approaches, national and international organizations recommend to keep the duration of pre- and postoperative fasting as short as possible. The benefits of nutritional therapy in stabilization and improvement of the nutritional status of surgical patients has already been shown in several patient groups like patients undergoing major abdominal surgeries. For other patients groups, like patients with sepsis, further studies are needed to evaluate the benefit of a perioperative nutritional intervention.
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Delirium is common in older adults in the perioperative period, being a complication in up to 60 % of major surgical procedures. Delirium has a significant impact on the medical, functional, and cognitive outcomes of older patients. Treatment of delirium can be quite complex and requires individualized patient assessment, plan of care, and empirical treatment. In light of the difficulties associated with delirium treatment and the complexity and frequent inadequacy of nonpharmacologic preventive measures, several drugs have been evaluated for efficacy in delirium prevention. ⋯ There is some preliminary evidence that haloperidol, newer neuroleptics (e.g., risperidone or olanzapine), and melatonin may be effective in reducing the incidence of postoperative delirium, but the data are not robust. Health care teams should still focus on traditional delirium prevention efforts, and reserve specific pharmacologic prevention to individual high-risk patients for whom the risks and benefits have been carefully considered.
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Establishing a trustful therapeutic relationship and reflecting on attitudes and behavior is essential in caring for patients with functional pain syndromes. Hope-disappointment circles are common and can be intensified by unfavorable caregiver behavior. A biopsychosocial, empathetic and coping-oriented attitude has proved to be useful. A motivating communication is recommended that carefully explores the pain and its interactions with psychosocial factors following the three typical phases of accepting complaints, establishing biopsychosocial understanding and developing coping strategies.
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Demographic change has also caused changes in perioperative intensive care because the proportion of geriatric patients who must undergo surgical procedures is increasing. With the current preoperative assessment instruments, it is still not possible to identify high-risk patients of this collective or to make a reliable prognosis concerning postoperative course. ⋯ The perioperative intensive care treatment of geriatric patients requires the readiness to engage in interdisciplinary collaboration because only with this close dialog can the treatment results be sustained.