An analysis of vascular surgery in elderly patients to determine whether age affects treatment strategy

Objectives The incidence of arterial disease increases with age. Increasing life expectancy in the western world will intensify demands on vascular surgeons with regard to increasing caseload, expanding patient selection criteria, and more complex and minimally-invasive treatment options. We analysed our arterial cases over the past 31 years (n = 6,144) and compared our methods of intervention and complication rates in the elderly population (>75) with the younger cohort, in order to determine whether age should influence our management strategies.