title: [Infeccious diseases as causes of death in autopsied elderly].
abstract: The population aging in Brazil was associated with the alterations in the morbimortality of the population. The aim of this study was to verify the causes of death and other pathological processes in autopsied elderly. The elderly with 60 years or more in the period from 1976 to 1998 represented 394 cases (24.4%). The age median was 69 years ranged from 60 to 120 years, being higher in the women (70.5 versus 68 yrs;p<0.05). The male gender (67.5%), white color (69.8%), and the cardiovascular (43.7%) and infectious (31%) causes of death were dominate. In the malnourished (76.2%) it had association of pneumonia and cystitis, (p<0.05). Arteriosclerosis (61.9%), and the chagasic (42.1%) and hypertensive cardiopathies (39.1%) were the most frequent processes. Therefore, it was observed an overlapping of chronic-degenerative and infectious causes of death. This study shows the necessity to value of follow up of body mass index and of risk factors for the development of illness in aging patients like pneumonia.
authors.affiliation: Faculdade de Medicina do Triângulo Mineiro, Uberaba, MG, Brasil.
authors.forename: Flávia Aparecida
authors.initials: FA
authors.lastname: de Oliveira
authors.forename: Marlene Antônia
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: dos Reis
authors.forename: Eumênia Costa da Cunha
authors.initials: EC
authors.lastname: Castro
authors.forename: Selma Freire de Carvalho
authors.initials: SF
authors.lastname: da Cunha
authors.forename: Vicente de Paula Antunes
authors.initials: Vde P
authors.lastname: Teixeira Vd
mesh_terms: D017677:Age Distribution; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001344:Autopsy; D001938:Brazil / Q000453:epidemiology; D002423:Cause of Death; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007239:Infections / Q000401:mortality; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012307:Risk Factors