geriatrics
All content is checked by medical journalists.Geriatrics (geriatric medicine) deals with the diseases of aging and old people (people over the age of 65). These are mainly diseases from the areas of internal medicine, neurology, orthopedics and psychiatry. Geriatrics is also concerned with maintaining the quality of life and the autonomy of older patients in an interdisciplinary manner.
Common diseases in old age are:
- Alzheimer's and other dementias
- Cardiovascular diseases (e.g. heart attack, heart failure, stroke)
- COPD
- Circulatory disorders
- Kidney weakness
- Parkinson's
- osteoporosis
- Broken bones after falls
- arthrosis
- diabetes
- Cancers
- Diseases of the musculoskeletal system
Multimorbidity
Geriatric treatment is made more difficult by the fact that old people often suffer from several diseases at the same time (multimorbidity). Geriatricians must therefore pay particular attention to possible drug interactions that an elderly patient may take. In particular, dementia patients who suffer from other diseases need specially trained staff and intensive care.
rehabilitation
Old people recover less quickly from surgery or injuries than younger people. So that they do not become nursing care cases, it is crucial to start intensive rehabilitation measures at an early stage. This includes physiotherapy measures as well as occupational therapy approaches, speech and swallowing therapy as well as social support.
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