Journal Mobile

Journal Issue: 
Volume 38: Issue 4: 2008

Format

Abstract

 

This symposium aimed to provide a practical ‘toolkit’ for the management of  common  elderly  problems  while  keeping  one  eye  on  future  developments. Dizziness, bone disease, age-related macular degeneration and cognitive impairment are  a  significant  cause  of  symptoms  and  disability  in  older  people. Treatment  and advances in the management of these conditions were discussed. One of the key messages was using both clinical and risk assessment tools to identify those who will  benefit  from  treatment. There  is  no  more  difficult  a  diagnosis  than  that  of ‘frailty’ but compelling evidence was presented that this is a comprehensible and measurable diagnosis, with an interesting insight into the use of a ‘frailty index’.

Cardiovascular disease in older people is becoming truly a ‘geriatric giant’. Leading experts  discussed  the  clinical  management  of  common  cardiovascular  problems presenting  in  older  people  with  particular  emphasis  on  the  dilemmas  faced  by clinicians in managing these conditions in frail older people.

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