Problems in Geriatric Medicine

1. Front Matter

   Pages 1-9

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2. Demographic and social factors

   • Anthony Martin

   Pages 11-18

3. Disorders of the cardiovascular system (I)

   • Anthony Martin

   Pages 19-39

4. Disorders of the cardiovascular system (II)

   • Anthony Martin

   Pages 41-66

5. Disorders of the cardiovascular system (III)

   • Anthony Martin

   Pages 67-76

6. Strokes

   • Anthony Martin

   Pages 77-85

7. Fits, faints and falls

   • Anthony Martin

   Pages 87-97

8. Failing mobility (‘gone off his feet’ syndrome)

   • Anthony Martin

   Pages 99-116

9. Incontinence

   • Anthony Martin

   Pages 117-125

10. Memory, confusion and sleep

    • Anthony Martin

    Pages 127-140

11. The use and misuse of drug treatment

    • Anthony Martin

    Pages 141-152

12. Bone disease and fractures

    • Anthony Martin

    Pages 153-166

13. Disorders of the blood

    • Anthony Martin

    Pages 167-177

14. Endocrine diseases

    • Anthony Martin

    Pages 179-187

15. Back Matter

    Pages 189-195

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The fact that there are special problems in the care of the elderly in the community is ample justification for writing a separate volume on the subject. The knowledge that there are increasing numbers of older people in virtually every country in the world makes it all the more important that the family physician should have sympathy with and understanding of the problems of them, since they are lilcely to make up a significant part of his worlcload and, increasingly, will take up more of his time and energy. There is a progressive amount of disability with advancing years, and this is particularly true of those aged 75 years and over. Increasing age is associated with serious impairment of hearing and vision, senses which younger people take for granted. Old age sees the arrival of major diseases of middle age with much greater frequency, such as ischaemic heart and cerebrovascular disease, diabetes mellitus and osteoarthritis. There are other disorders that are virtually confined to the elderly, such as fractures of the femoral neck, Paget's disease and myeloma. We now know that the disintegration of the con­ ducting tissue of the heart is largely an age-related phenomenon. Ageing processes affect every major organ system in the body and the impairment of physiological perfor­ mance resulting from these affects the elderly individual's response to infections, disease and environmental changes in complex ways that are not seen in younger people.

• geriatrics
• medicine

• Department of Geriatric Medicine, Crawley Hospital, Sussex, UK

  Anthony Martin

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