ABSTRACT
Age-related changes are important in the management of orthogeriatric patients, for example regarding pain medication. In addition to physiologic age-related changes, many older patients have multiple comorbidities that signify an added risk for injuries, so in orthogeriatric patients, age-related changes as well as concomitant diseases play an important role in diagnosis, treatment and primary and secondary prevention. Physiological age-related changes include increasing arterial stiffness as well as a decreased adrenergic response of the cardiovascular system. Sarcopenia is the term for age-related loss of muscle mass. Age-related changes in the lung include structural changes, changes in muscle function and changes in pulmonary immunologic function. Immunosenescence dampens an adequate immune response to immunological threat, complicating the diagnosis of infections in the older person. Weight reducing diets in older persons are nearly always contraindicated, as elderly individuals mainly lose muscle mass when their caloric intake is lower than their daily needs.
