Serious Infections Are Common in Older Adults

Serious infections are common in older adults presenting to primary care, according to the results of a recent study.

In order to evaluate incidence rates of potentially serious infections in individuals aged 65 years and older, the researchers examined data from medical records of patients presenting to 111 Flemish general practitioners from 2000 to 2015.

Overall, they found that older individuals have an average of 8.0% risk of presenting with a potentially serious infection every year, with acute cystitis, influenza-like illness, and pneumonia being the most common. Rates of pneumonia were higher in older age groups and in men and rates of influenza-like illness were significantly lower in older age groups. Common comorbidities included non-insulin dependent diabetes, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, asthma, heart failure, and chronic renal insufficiency.

“Potentially serious infections are quite common in an older patient population presenting to primary care. They are accompanied by several chronic comorbidities, which may differ by infection type.”

—Michael Potts

Reference:

Struyf T, Nuyts S, Tournoy J, et al. Burden of infections on older patients presenting to general practice: a registry-based study. Family Practice. 2021;38(2):166–172. https://doi.org/10.1093/fampra/cmaa105