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Chapter 29 - Chronic pain after thoracic surgery
from Section 3 - Post-operative management
- By Sameena T. Ahmed
Edited by Cait P. Searl, Sameena T. Ahmed
Book:

Core Topics in Thoracic Anesthesia

Published online:

10 December 2009

Print publication:

02 April 2009, pp 196-202
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Summary

The population in the developed world is aging, together with an increasing life expectancy for both men and women. The incidence of thoracic pathologies in the elderly of the developed world is rising. The main cautions of thoracic anesthesia in the elderly are those of geriatric anesthesia in general and those of the surgical procedure itself. In the elderly, risk assessment should focus on identifying the physiologic state and reserve of specific organ systems. It is often more challenging to identify previously undiagnosed comorbidity, optimize it and try to predict its bearing on the outcome. The aim of the pre-anesthetic assessment is to detect and optimize comorbidities, and quantify objectively the extent of reduced physiologic reserve of systems. The goalposts of healthcare delivery standards have been moved with expectations of better results following anesthesia and surgery in thoracic surgery in the elderly.