title: Operative procedures in the elderly in low-resource settings: a review of Médecins Sans Frontières facilities.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  As the demographic transition occurs across developing countries, an increasing number of elderly individuals are affected by disasters and conflicts. This study aimed to evaluate the elderly population that underwent an operative procedure at MSF facilities.
  
  
  METHODS
  A retrospective review of prospectively collected operative cases performed at MSF-Operational Centre Brussels (MSF-OCB) facilities between June 2008 and December 2012 was completed. Baseline demographic data, American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) physical status and surgical indications were collected for each patient. For each procedure, the degree of urgency, anesthesia type, and intra-operative mortality were noted. All patients aged 50 and over at the time of the procedure were considered elderly, as proposed by the World Health Organization (WHO). Comparisons were made with the 18-49 age group in order to elucidate differences between older and younger individuals.
  
  
  RESULTS
  We reviewed a total of 93,385 procedures performed on 83,911 patients in 21 different countries. Patients aged 50 and over comprised 11.5% (9,628/83,911) of all patients. While most procedures (57.6%) in the comparison group were urgent, this proportion decreased substantially in the elderly. Intra-operative mortality was considerably lower in the 50-59 group (0.12%) but increased with each age stratum. The most commonly performed surgical procedures in the elderly included herniorrhaphies, simple and extensive wound debridements, abscess incision and drainages, minor tumorectomies, and urological procedures.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In light of the increasing elderly population in developing countries, efforts should be made to better quantify and address their surgical needs.
authors.affiliation: Centre for Global Surgery, McGill University Health Centre, 1650 Cedar Avenue, L9 411, Montreal, QC, H3G 1A4, Canada, evwong@jhsph.edu.
authors.forename: Evan G
authors.initials: EG
authors.lastname: Wong
authors.forename: Miguel
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Trelles
authors.forename: Lynette
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Dominguez
authors.forename: Jerome
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Mupenda Mwania
authors.forename: Cheride
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Kasonga Tshibangu
authors.forename: Sanaul
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Haq Saqeb
authors.forename: Khalil U R
authors.initials: KU
authors.lastname: Hazrati
authors.forename: Shailvi
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Gupta
authors.forename: Gilbert
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Burnham
authors.forename: Adam L
authors.initials: AL
authors.lastname: Kushner
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D003906:Developing Countries / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D017558:Elective Surgical Procedures / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D004630:Emergencies; D005260:Female; D006297:Health Services Accessibility; D006301:Health Services Needs and Demand; D019456:Health Transition; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D013514:Surgical Procedures, Operative / Q000401:mortality / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D055815:Young Adult