Age syndrome
Age syndromes are syndromes that occur more frequently in the age over 60 than in younger people.
Syndromes are the accumulation of several individual symptoms, which in this combination can have their cause in very different diseases (at the same time). Their occurrence, or the suspicion of it due to a single symptom , should always trigger a comprehensive investigation ( geriatric assessment , combined specialist diagnosis ) in order to keep secondary damage to a minimum and to be able to treat the underlying disease.
The individual age syndromes, and the underlying diseases or disorders, often give each other a boost. In the English-speaking world, they are also called the “five capital I” after the English words for
- I ntelligenzabbau (especially the various dementias)
- I mmobility (lack of exercise, osteoarthritis , paralysis )
- I nstabilität ( stroke , fall aged )
- I nkontinenz ( urinary incontinence or anal incontinence ), and
- I mpairment of ... (limitations of the perception organs eye, ear such as eye diseases in old age, especially presbyopia , hearing disorders , etc.)
These English-language terms of age syndromes summarize various diseases as warning signs for the attending physician.
Around 5 percent of people over 60 years of age in industrialized nations are so handicapped in their everyday activities by various diseases that they depend on help for long stretches of the day (need for care). They are often medically supervised by different specialist disciplines side by side. An agreement between these specialist disciplines (often e.g. ophthalmologist , internist , orthopedist ) could at least postpone, if not completely prevent, decompensation and the subsequent hospital or nursing home admission. Recognizing age syndromes is helpful for this. Geriatrics is not just a specialist discipline, but also a cross-sectional task in medicine.
See also
literature
- JC Brocklehurst: The evolution of geriatric medicine. In: J. Amer. Geriatrician Soc. 1978 Oct; 26 (10), pp. 433-439. PMID 701692
- Ingo Füsgen: Geriatrics. Volume 1 and 2, 4th edition. Kohlhammer, 2004, ISBN 3-17-017140-2 .