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How safe is open abdominal aortic aneurysm surgery for octogenarians in New Zealand?
Author(s) -
Thomson Ian A.,
Goh Fern,
Livingstone Vicki,
Van Rij Andre M.
Publication year - 2009
Publication title -
anz journal of surgery
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.426
H-Index - 70
eISSN - 1445-2197
pISSN - 1445-1433
DOI - 10.1111/j.1445-2197.2009.04886.x
Subject(s) - medicine , abdominal aortic aneurysm , surgery , dehiscence , wound dehiscence , open surgery , abdominal surgery , aortic aneurysm , aneurysm
Background: Abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) is an important cause of mortality for the aged, a group that has been denied surgery in the past for fear of peri‐operative mortality. Is this attitude still justified? Methods: Analysis of prospectively gathered data from a vascular database. Results: 10.9% of all open AAA operations were in patients older than 79 years with an 8% mortality cate compared to 3% for younger patients. For fit elderly patients with ASA scores less than 3, mortality was just under 4%. Renal failure and wound dehiscence were more common in the elderly. Conclusion: When endovascular repair is not possible in a fit elderly patient, open surgery can be performed with acceptable results.