title: Infection in an aging population.
abstract: The global population is rapidly aging. Currently, 566 million people are ≥65 years old worldwide, with estimates of nearly 1.5 billion by 2050, particularly in developing countries. Infections constitute a third of mortality in people ≥65 years old. Moreover, lengthening life spans correlate with increased time in hospitals or long-term care facilities and exposure to drug-resistant pathogens. Indeed, the risk of nosocomial infections increases with age, independent of duration spent in healthcare facilities. In this review, we summarize our understanding of how the aging immune system relates to bacterial infections. We highlight the most prevalent infections affecting aging populations including pneumonia, urinary tract infections, and wound infections and make recommendations for future research into infection in aging populations.
authors.affiliation: Singapore Centre on Environmental Life Sciences Engineering, School of Biological Sciences, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, Singapore. Electronic address: KKline@ntu.edu.sg.
authors.forename: Kimberly A
authors.initials: KA
authors.lastname: Kline
authors.affiliation: McMaster Immunology Research Centre & M.G. DeGroote Institute for Infectious Disease Research, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada. Electronic address: bowdish@mcmaster.ca.
authors.forename: Dawn M E
authors.initials: DM
authors.lastname: Bowdish
mesh_terms: D000208:Acute Disease; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000375:Aging / Q000276:immunology*; D001424:Bacterial Infections / Q000276:immunology* / Q000382:microbiology*; D003428:Cross Infection; D004198:Disease Susceptibility; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D064307:Microbiota; D018410:Pneumonia, Bacterial / Q000276:immunology / Q000382:microbiology; D012307:Risk Factors; D014552:Urinary Tract Infections / Q000276:immunology / Q000382:microbiology; D014946:Wound Infection / Q000276:immunology / Q000382:microbiology