CALIFORNIA: Most seniors dread surgery and refuse it, but new research tells us that avoiding every surgery can be dangerous.
According to media reports, researchers conducted a study to determine which elderly people may be at the highest risk of complications from surgeries and which surgeries may cause harm.
For their study, the researchers used data from the American College of Surgeons (ACS). They reviewed the medical records of nearly 57,000 people over the age of 65 and divided them into three groups. One group consisted of mildly frail (about 29%), second frail (about 66%) and third group of severely frail (4.3%) patients.
The researchers found two key factors for successful surgery: how frail the patient over 65 is before surgery and the level of risk involved in the surgery.
Dr. Roel Quimber, co-author of the study and surgeon-in-chief of Riverside University Health System in the US, said that the results of the study tell us that elderly patients should undergo mandatory surgery when doctors say that surgery is the best option.
Postponing the operation until complications have progressed to the point of requiring an emergency operation is unwise, Dr. Roll said. Because this emergency operation also brings death and serious problems.
He said that often the elderly and their doctors postpone necessary surgery only to be operated on when a major problem arises. This behavior is not without risk.
