Safety of Cosmetic Procedures in Elderly and Octogenarian Patients.
BACKGROUND
The proportion of elderly patients in North America is increasing. This has resulted in an increased number of elderly patients undergoing cosmetic procedures.


OBJECTIVE
The purpose of this study was to determine the incidence of postoperative complications in elderly patients (age ≥65) undergoing elective aesthetic plastic surgical procedures compared with younger patients.


METHODS
A total of 183,914 cosmetic surgical procedures were reviewed using the prospectively enrolled cohort of patients in the CosmetAssure database. Comorbidities and postoperative complications in elderly and younger patient groups were recorded and compared. A separate analysis of postoperative complications was performed in the octogenarian subgroup (age ≥80).


RESULTS
A total of 6786 elderly patients who underwent cosmetic procedures were included in the study. Mean ages (±standard deviation) in elderly and younger patients were 69.1 ± 4.1 and 39.2 ± 12.5 years, respectively. The elderly patient population had more men, a higher mean body mass index (BMI), a higher prevalence of diabetes mellitus (DM), and fewer smokers compared with the younger patients. The overall postoperative complication rate was not significantly different between elderly and younger patients. When stratified by type of cosmetic procedure, only abdominoplasty was associated with a higher postoperative complication rate in elderly compared with younger patients. The most common postoperative complications in elderly patients were hematoma and infection. The overall postoperative complication rate in octogenarians was 2.2%, which was not significantly different from the younger population.


CONCLUSIONS
Cosmetic procedures in elderly patients, including octogenarians, remain safe with an acceptable complication rate compared to younger patients.
Drs Yeslev, Gupta, and Winocour are Plastic Surgery Fellows, Dr Shack is a Professor and Chairman, and Dr Higdon is an Assistant Professor, Department of Plastic Surgery, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee. Dr Grotting is a Clinical Professor, Division of Plastic Surgery, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, Alabama, and is CME/MOC Section Editor for Aesthetic Surgery Journal.
Max
M
Yeslev
Drs Yeslev, Gupta, and Winocour are Plastic Surgery Fellows, Dr Shack is a Professor and Chairman, and Dr Higdon is an Assistant Professor, Department of Plastic Surgery, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee. Dr Grotting is a Clinical Professor, Division of Plastic Surgery, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, Alabama, and is CME/MOC Section Editor for Aesthetic Surgery Journal.
Varun
V
Gupta
Drs Yeslev, Gupta, and Winocour are Plastic Surgery Fellows, Dr Shack is a Professor and Chairman, and Dr Higdon is an Assistant Professor, Department of Plastic Surgery, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee. Dr Grotting is a Clinical Professor, Division of Plastic Surgery, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, Alabama, and is CME/MOC Section Editor for Aesthetic Surgery Journal.
Julian
J
Winocour
Drs Yeslev, Gupta, and Winocour are Plastic Surgery Fellows, Dr Shack is a Professor and Chairman, and Dr Higdon is an Assistant Professor, Department of Plastic Surgery, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee. Dr Grotting is a Clinical Professor, Division of Plastic Surgery, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, Alabama, and is CME/MOC Section Editor for Aesthetic Surgery Journal.
R Bruce
RB
Shack
Drs Yeslev, Gupta, and Winocour are Plastic Surgery Fellows, Dr Shack is a Professor and Chairman, and Dr Higdon is an Assistant Professor, Department of Plastic Surgery, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee. Dr Grotting is a Clinical Professor, Division of Plastic Surgery, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, Alabama, and is CME/MOC Section Editor for Aesthetic Surgery Journal.
James C
JC
Grotting
Drs Yeslev, Gupta, and Winocour are Plastic Surgery Fellows, Dr Shack is a Professor and Chairman, and Dr Higdon is an Assistant Professor, Department of Plastic Surgery, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee. Dr Grotting is a Clinical Professor, Division of Plastic Surgery, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, Alabama, and is CME/MOC Section Editor for Aesthetic Surgery Journal.
K Kye
KK
Higdon
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D015992:Body Mass Index; D003357:Cosmetic Techniques / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D003920:Diabetes Mellitus / Q000453:epidemiology; D017558:Elective Surgical Procedures; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011183:Postoperative Complications / Q000453:epidemiology*; D011446:Prospective Studies; D017678:Sex Distribution; D012907:Smoking / Q000453:epidemiology; D013714:Tennessee / Q000453:epidemiology