General Characteristics of Over 65 Years of Geriatric Patient Population in Respiratory Disease Service

Aim: The aim of this study was to evaluate the individual characteristics of the patients aged 65 and over who were hospitalized in the department of respiratory diseases. Material and Methods: The study included elderly patients who were hospitalized in the Respiratory Diseases Department at Antalya Training and Research Hospital between 1 January 2017 and 31 December 2017. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), people aged 65 and over were considered as older. The demographic data, reasons of hospitalization, number of days of hospitalization, posterior anterior chest radiographs and discharge status were recorded in the data form. All patients aged 65 years and over were included in the study, while those under 65 years of age were excluded from the study. In the study period, the first hospitalizations of the patients who were readmission more than one were taken into consideration. Results: A total of 587 patients with mean age of 76.5±7.4 years were enrolled in the study. Median hospital stay duration of patients was 7 (1-88) days. Reasons for hospitalization by frequency order were; chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) exacerbation (n=18; 30.8%), pneumonia (n=166; 28.3%), non-specific lower respiratory tract infection (n=78; 13.3%) and asthma attack (n=63; 10.7%). There were 419 (71.4%) patients with comorbid diseases, and the most common detected diseases were including cardiovascular (n=267; 63.7%), endocrinological (n=114; 27.2%) and neurological (n=91; 21.7%) diseases. The mortality rate of the patients was 4.4% (n=26). Conclusion: As a result, COPD exacerbation and pneumonia are the most common causes of pulmonary diseases in geriatric patients older than 65 years. The most common comorbid conditions are cardiovascular diseases