title: Carotid endarterectomy in octogenarians.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  This study compared the postoperative complication rate between patients age 80 or older to those younger than 80 to determine if older patients were associated with higher risk of complication following carotid endarterectomy.
  
  
  METHODS
  Patients who received carotid endarterectomy between January 1997 and December 2005 were identified using the New Zealand Vascular Surgical Audit Registry. Patients were recruited into the two predetermined age groups. Baseline demographics and the complication rates between the two groups were analysed and compared using Chi-squared test. Confounding factors were adjusted using logistic regression.
  
  
  RESULTS
  1682 patients were identified, of which 243 patients (14%) were age 80 or older. Younger patients were more likely to be male (P=0.002) and diabetics (P=0.047) and more patients in the older age group were symptomatic from the carotid stenosis (P=0.014). The overall complication rate was 17.2% and there was no significant difference between the two groups (P=0.268). The overall combined postoperative death, TIAs and stroke rate was 3.3%. The cardiac complication rate was low but higher in octogenarians at 4.5% compared to 2.2% (P=0.035).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Older age does not appear to be associated with higher perioperative complications in carotid endarterectomy.
authors.affiliation: University of Cork, Cork, Ireland.
authors.forename: Shaw-Hua
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Kueh
authors.forename: Vicki
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Livingstone
authors.forename: Ian A
authors.initials: IA
authors.lastname: Thomson
mesh_terms: D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D016893:Carotid Stenosis / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000401:mortality / Q000601:surgery*; D002423:Cause of Death; D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D015331:Cohort Studies; D016894:Endarterectomy, Carotid / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000379:methods / Q000401:mortality*; D005260:Female; D017052:Hospital Mortality; D006801:Humans; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009520:New Zealand; D016017:Odds Ratio; D011183:Postoperative Complications / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000401:mortality; D011379:Prognosis; D012042:Registries; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D018570:Risk Assessment; D016019:Survival Analysis; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014463:Ultrasonography