Mechanical ventilation in geriatric patients who underwent orthopaedic surgery: a prospective study

Objective

Our hypothesis is that older patients more often receive mechanical ventilation than their younger counterparts.

Methods

During a 4-year period (2001–2004), we collected data on 1410 patients admitted to an ICU of an orthopedic surgery hospital. We analyzed the use of mechanical ventilation.

Results

The percentage of patients that needed at least 1 day of mechanical ventilation progressively increases from patients in their sixties to those in their nineties (r = 0.97): <65 years, 3.5%; 65–69 years, 1.2%; 70–79 years, 3.7%; 80–89 years, 16.1%; 90 years or more, 25.8%.

Conclusions

In geriatric patients there is a positive correlation between age and need of mechanical ventilation in the postoperative period of orthopedic surgery.