Surgery: There Are No Low-Risk Procedures For Frail Older Patients (NYT)

From a New York Times online article:

JAMA Surgery“Our data indicate that there are no low-risk procedures among patients who are frail,” Dr. Hall and his co-authors concluded in their study.

Dr. Hall’s research, recently published in JAMA Surgery, has found that frail, older adults are more likely than other patients to die after even supposedly minor procedures — and even when the surgery goes well, without complications.

After operations, frail patients find it harder than others to regain strength and mobility, and to return to independent lives. Doctors and researchers assess frailty in a variety of ways. Geriatricians often measure things like gait and grip strength, and look for unintended weight loss and exhaustion.

 

To read more: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/12/13/health/frail-elderly-surgery.html

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