Older adult Flashcards
What was the average life expectancy in 2020
78.93 years
What is the focus on while assessing older adults
Healthy / successful aging
*Extra importance with functional assessment
What are the goals of care with older adults
maintain function
fulfilling, active lives
Promote healthy aging
What is primary aging
changes in physiologic reserve that occur over time
*independent of changes induced by disease
When does primary aging generally appear
during periods of stress
-dehydration
-shock
-other acute illness
What changes occur with BP in older adults
Systolic HTN with widened pulse pressure and an auscultatory gap
What occurs to heart rate / rhythm with older adults
decline in function of pacemaker cells
-affects the response to physiologic stress
How is respiratory rate different in older adults
It doesn’t
How does temperature change in older adults
changes in temp regulation leads to susceptibility (hypo/hyperthermia)
What type of skin do older adults have
“onion skin”
Fragile/loose/transparent
How do nails change in older adults
lose luster
yellow
thicken (especially toes)
How does hair change in older adults
Loses pigment
hairline recedes
loss of hair occurs elsewhere
What happens to the eyes of older people
Eyeballs recede into orbit
corneas lose luster
dry eye common
pupils become smaller
presbyopia
increased risk for glaucoma / cataracts / macular degeneration
What happens to the ears of older adults
decreased hearing (presbycusis)
increased cerumen impaction
What changes occur in the mouth of older adults
decreased salivary secretion
decreased taste sense
What generally causes a decrease sense of taste in older adults
medications
What changes to the thorax and lungs in older adults
Decrease exercise capacity
Chest wall stiffens
Kyphosis (osteoporosis)
What may cause a decrease in exercise capacity in older adults
cardiac or pulmonary or both
If you hear S3 after age 40, what is it suggestive of
HF
What extra heart sound can be heard in older adults
S3
S4 -> can be healthy (older) but suggestive of decreased ventricular compliance = decrease filling
Why is aortic sclerosis common in older adults
Fibrosis and calcification
but does not impede blood flow
Why do you hear aortic stenosis in older adults
Leaflets become calcified and immobile
Outflow obstruction
*most common
How common is erectile dysfunction in older men
1/2 of older men have it
When does benign prostatic hyperplasia present
in the third decade of life and continue into the 7th
