ABSTRACT
Life expectancy is increasing throughout the world population. This means that more individuals survive into old age and as the number of births falls, the proportion of the population looked on as old increases. In the United Kingdom the population aged over 65 years has risen from 5 per cent to 15 per cent in less than a hundred years. Similar changes in the age structure of populations throughout the rest of the world are occurring at an even more dramatic rate so that an understanding of the special characteristics of older people, including their health/illness profiles and the way that they present, is increasingly important in medical practice. Women survive into late life more often than men and in the years beyond the age of 75 men are outnumbered by three to one. From 1985 to 2041 projections forecast that people in the UK over the age of 60 will increase from 21 per cent to 26 per cent while the rise in the over-85s will be from 6 per cent to 11 per cent (700,000 to 1,700,000). Illnesses and disability become more common in older people hence they are more likely to consult general practitioners, social services, and hospitals.
