title: Acute abdominal pain in the older adult.
abstract: Abdominal pain in older adults is a concerning symptom common to a variety of diagnoses with high morbidity and mortality. Organizing the differential into categories based on pathology (inflammatory, obstructive, vascular, or other causes) provides a framework for the history, physical, and diagnostic studies. An organized approach and treatment and considerations specific to the geriatric population are discussed.
authors.affiliation: Division of Emergency Medicine, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC 27710, USA. Luna.ragsdale@duke.edu
authors.forename: Luna
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Ragsdale
authors.forename: Lauren
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Southerland
mesh_terms: D015746:Abdominal Pain / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology; D000208:Acute Disease; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D004630:Emergencies; D004636:Emergency Service, Hospital; D006801:Humans; D009017:Morbidity / Q000639:trends; D012307:Risk Factors; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology