Anesthesia and the geriatric patient.
The elderly patient presents a number of challenges to the anesthetist in otolaryngologic surgery, ranging from psychologic to physiologic to pharmacologic. Careful attention to the changes in physiology, with depressed or deranged function of many organ systems, requires closer monitoring of vital signs and the incremental administration of drugs. Preoperative evaluation may often be more thorough than a "minor" surgical procedure would seem to indicate, simply to ensure a good perioperative course. Balancing the necessity for perfusion of vital organs against the work load imposed on the heart involves a thorough understanding of the patient's medical condition, so that an anesthetic treatment plan may be tailored to the needs of the patient. Geriatric patients enjoy the benefits of many modern otolaryngologic procedures because of the joint efforts of the otolaryngologist and the anesthesiologist. We may expect more progress to come.
D000368:Aged; D000375:Aging; D000758:Anesthesia; D000768:Anesthesia, General / Q000379:methods; D000772:Anesthesia, Local / Q000379:methods; D006801:Humans; D010808:Physical Examination; D011300:Preoperative Care; D012143:Respiratory Physiological Phenomena