Elderly faints, then falls - wikimedia commons[/caption]Complications after hip surgery can sometimes lead to death. According to statistics one in five older adults suffering a hip fracture are likely to die in the year following a fracture. Researchers now find that anesthesiology has a significant role in what happens to patients postsurgery.
In almost every family folks learn about relatives who suffered a fall, especially senior citizens. Most hip fractures occur after the age of 65 and 10 shelf or death following surgery increases after the age of 80.
The 96-year-old woman, a cousin, has recently suffered a second hip fracture is hospitalized. Family is concerned about the complications for someone of her age. Hip fractures are considered to be a global public health problem considering the aging of the population, with approximately 1.6 million fractures occurring annually worldwide.
Researchers at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania discovered that the use of regional anesthesia versus general anesthesia can make a difference in some of the complications that lead to death. Found that the use of regional anesthesia versus general anesthesia, was associated with a significant reduction in major pulmonary complications and death.
Lead study author Mark D. Neuman, MD, assistant professor of Anesthesiology and Critical Care and senior fellow at the Leonard Davis Institute for Health Economics, tells us, " There is an urgent need for better information to guide patients and clinicians make decisions about anesthesia for hip fracture surgery, but so far very few large observational studies in the general population have examined this issue.”
Dr. Neuman and his and his team examined a total of 18,158 patients. They tested the association of regional (epidural, spinal or nerve block) versus general anesthesia with with how a patient fared following surgery and what complications might occur involving the lungs or the heart or cardiovascular complications. What they found is that a significant number of patients fared better who received regional a as opposed to general anesthesia.
Additional complications that can impact patient at any age include dislocation deep vein thrombosis and infection.problems occur more frequently on hip replacement revisions, according to experts.
Given the potential for complications, how do doctors make a decision on treatment following surgery. Medical experts tell us that a lot depends on the overall health of the patient, although age is a factor in procedure. At least knowing the type of anesthesia .can be helpful in that decision-making process.
