The specificities of orthopedic trauma in geriatric patients

peer reviewedAging of the population represents an ubiquitous and ever-growing phenomenon in the developed countries. Geriatric traumatology is a constant-developping sub-specia-lity of orthopedics and traumatology; it deals with the specific medical problems developed by older patients when affected by muskuloskeletal trauma. The optimal treatment of this patho-logy as well as the age threshold used to define the «geriatric» patient are still subjects of debate. Chronological age cannot be used as the sole inclusion criteria;physiological age as defi-ned by comorbidities seems to be more appropriate. The aim of this article is to provide a general overview of the problems that the orthopedic surgeons faces when dealing with geriatric trauma : timing of surgery and anesthesia, technical aspects of surgery and fractures, complications and problems with the postoperative management of geriatric patients. Geriatric trauma is already today an important problem; it will cer-tainly become a great challenge in coming years. The solution must reside in a multidisciplinary approach backed up by a solid infra-structure and good management decisions