GERIATRIC ADMISSIONS IN A DEVELOPING COUNTRY: EXPERIENCE FROM A TERTIARY CENTRE IN NIGERIA

Background: The aging populations in developing countries have brought a demographic and an epidemiological transition, affecting the impact of chronic diseases on the health status of the population. Objective: To review the pattern of geriatric admissions in the medical wards of the University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital (UPTH). Method: Medical records of all geriatric patients aged >= 60 years admitted in the medical wards between June 2002 and May 2006 were retrieved and reviewed retrospectively. Results: 2736 admissions to the adult medical wards over the period were reported. Among these, 1122 (41%) were geriatric patients aged 60 years. The most common geriatric illnesses were cardiovascular diseases, 622 (43.7%), infections, 268 (18.8%) and endocrine diseases, 220 (15.4%). Malignancies, renal diseases and hematological diseases were few, being responsible for 53 (3.7%) 48 (3.4%) and 35 (2.5%) of medical admissions respectively. Only 1.5% of the patients spent more than 30 days in the hospital. More than half (56.4%) of the patients spent 1-2 weeks, while 33.3% of patients spent less than a week in hospital. Of the total geriatric patients seen, 70.6% recovered and were discharged home, 26.7% died and 2.5% left against medical advice. Conclusion: Elderly patients constitute a high proportion of in-patient medical admissions. Chronic diseases were responsible for the majority of morbidity and mortality in the elderly patients. (Ethn Dis. 2009;19:359-362)