Considerations for the Older Trauma Patient

Purpose of Review The number of older adults suffering major trauma has increased dramatically. This review provides an update on significant areas of research undertaken in recent years to improve care of this complex and challenging patient group. Recent Findings. Rates of undertriage remain high in geriatric trauma with detrimental impact on patient outcomes. Current pre-hospital and hospital-based triage systems require modification. Co-management of patients with specialist geriatric teams can improve clinical outcome but the best model of care and method of implementation is deliberated. Frailty is perhaps more sensitive than age in identifying high-risk patients. Chest wall trauma represents a major cause of morbidity and mortality with research focussing on improved analgesic regimens. Summary The older trauma patient represents a very high-risk group. There is paucity of evidence for many key areas of care and future academic effort must focus on accumulating high-quality prospective data to determine best management.