Geriatric Medicine: Towards Personalized Medicine

A special issue of Journal of Personalized Medicine (ISSN 2075-4426). This special issue belongs to the section "Clinical Medicine, Cell, and Organism Physiology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (20 October 2024) | Viewed by 2865

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
Department of Internal Medicine, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, 9713 GZ Groningen, The Netherlands
Interests: geriatric medicine; multimorbidity; delirium

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Guest Editor
Department of Internal Medicine and Geriatrics, Amsterdam University Medical Centers, Location AMC, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Interests: fractures in geriatric patients; vertebral fractures; hip fractures

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The field of geriatrics is expanding globally, driven by changing demographics. Older individuals exhibit diverse clinical profiles, marked not only by their advanced age but also by the presence of multiple chronic diseases as well as problems in the functional and psychosocial domain.

As precision medicine and personalized treatment approaches advance rapidly, new possibilities emerge in caring for geriatric patients. Tailoring treatment strategies to each patient's specific health status helps strike the right balance between over-treatment and under-treatment, aligning better with the preferences of elderly individuals.

In this Special Issue, we will explore the current state, challenges, opportunities, perspectives, and research directions within geriatrics, with a particular emphasis on enhancing treatment outcomes and the quality of life for this unique demographic. We encourage clinicians and scientists in the field to submit original articles or reviews that align with these objectives.

Prof. Dr. Barbara C. Van Munster
Dr. Hanna C. Willems
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Keywords

  • geriatrics medicine
  • advance care planning
  • personalized medicine
  • multimorbidity

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

10 pages, 614 KiB  
Article
Comparative Clinical Characteristics of Frail Older Adults in the Emergency Department: Long-Term Care Hospital versus Community Residence
by Yunhyung Choi, Hosub Chung, Jiyeon Lim, Keon Kim, Sungjin Bae, Yoonhee Choi and Donghoon Lee
J. Pers. Med. 2024, 14(10), 1026; https://doi.org/10.3390/jpm14101026 - 26 Sep 2024
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Abstract
Background/objective: Older patients from long-term care hospitals (LTCHs) presenting to emergency departments (EDs) exhibit a higher prevalence of frailty than those from the community. However, no study has examined frailty in patients from LTCHs in the ED. This study compared frailty in older [...] Read more.
Background/objective: Older patients from long-term care hospitals (LTCHs) presenting to emergency departments (EDs) exhibit a higher prevalence of frailty than those from the community. However, no study has examined frailty in patients from LTCHs in the ED. This study compared frailty in older patients from LTCHs and the community. Methods: We retrospectively analyzed data from the EDs of three university hospitals between 1 August and 31 October 2023, involving 5908 patients (515 from LTCHs and 5393 from the community). The Korean version of the Clinical Frailty Scale (CFS-K) was used to assess individuals aged 65 and older. We compared clinical characteristics, frailty, length of stay (LOS), and diagnosis between patients from LTCHs (LTCH group) and the community (community group). Results: Among ED patients, 55.0% and 35.2% in the LTCH and the community groups, respectively, were frail (p < 0.001). Of these, 71.7% in the LTCH group were hospitalized compared with 53.1% in the community group (p = 0.001). The odds ratio for in-hospital mortality was 4.910 (95% CI 1.458–16.534, p = 0.010) for frail LTCH patients and 3.748 (95% CI 2.599–5.405, p < 0.001) for frail community patients, compared to non-frail patients. Conclusions: Patients from LTCHs with frailty had higher hospital admission rates and increased in-hospital mortality compared to those in the community at the same frailty level. This study offers essential insights into the characteristics of older patients in LTCHs for healthcare administrators and medical staff worldwide. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Geriatric Medicine: Towards Personalized Medicine)
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7 pages, 220 KiB  
Communication
Treatment Classification by Intent in Oncology—The Need for Meaningful Definitions: Curative, Palliative and Potentially Life-Prolonging
by Zsolt Fekete, Andrea Fekete and Gabriel Kacsó
J. Pers. Med. 2024, 14(9), 932; https://doi.org/10.3390/jpm14090932 - 31 Aug 2024
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Abstract
Background: Realistic cancer treatment goals should be used by health care professionals and communicated to patients, families, and the public. The current nomenclature on this subject is outdated and has not been changed since the advent of modern oncology in the middle of [...] Read more.
Background: Realistic cancer treatment goals should be used by health care professionals and communicated to patients, families, and the public. The current nomenclature on this subject is outdated and has not been changed since the advent of modern oncology in the middle of the 20th century. Methods: Based on the literature we propose a three-tier system composed of curative, palliative, and potentially life-prolonging (PLP) therapies, instead of the current two-tier system of only curative and palliative treatment. Results: The new system introduces the notion of prolonged survival. Furthermore, the negative connotation linked to palliative care is also eliminated in this setting. Conclusion: The current terminology used to describe cancer treatment goals has not been updated since the mid-20th century and it is time for a more modern approach. We propose a three-tier system: (1) curative treatment, (2) palliative care, and (3) potentially life-prolonging therapy. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Geriatric Medicine: Towards Personalized Medicine)
13 pages, 1084 KiB  
Article
The “Can Do, Do Do” Framework Applied to Assess the Association between Physical Capacity, Physical Activity and Prospective Falls, Subsequent Fractures, and Mortality in Patients Visiting the Fracture Liaison Service
by Merle R. Schene, Caroline E. Wyers, Johanna H. M. Driessen, Lisanne Vranken, Kenneth Meijer, Joop P. van den Bergh and Hanna C. Willems
J. Pers. Med. 2024, 14(4), 337; https://doi.org/10.3390/jpm14040337 - 23 Mar 2024
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Abstract
The “can do, do do” framework combines measures of poor and normal physical capacity (PC, measured by a 6 min walking test, can do/can’t do) and physical activity (PA, measured by accelerometer, do do/don’t do) into four domains and is able to categorize [...] Read more.
The “can do, do do” framework combines measures of poor and normal physical capacity (PC, measured by a 6 min walking test, can do/can’t do) and physical activity (PA, measured by accelerometer, do do/don’t do) into four domains and is able to categorize patient subgroups with distinct clinical characteristics, including fall and fracture risk factors. This study aims to explore the association between domain categorization and prospective fall, fracture, and mortality outcomes. This 6-year prospective study included patients visiting a Fracture Liaison Service with a recent fracture. Outcomes were first fall (at 3 years of follow-up, measured by fall diaries), first subsequent fracture, and mortality (at 6 years). Cumulative incidences of all three outcomes were calculated. The association between domain categorization and time to the three outcomes was assessed by uni- and multivariate Cox proportional hazard analysis with the “can do, do do” group as reference. The physical performance of 400 patients with a recent fracture was assessed (mean age: 64 years; 70.8% female), of whom 61.5%, 20.3%, and 4.9% sustained a first fall, sustained a subsequent fracture, or had died. Domain categorization using the “can do, do do” framework was not associated with time to first fall, subsequent fracture, or mortality in the multivariate Cox regression analysis for all groups. “Can’t do, don’t do” group: hazard ratio [HR] for first fall: 0.75 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.45–1.23), first fracture HR: 0.58 (95% CI: 0.24–1.41), and mortality HR: 1.19 (95% CI: 0.54–6.95). Categorizing patients into a two-dimensional framework seems inadequate to study complex, multifactorial outcomes. A personalized approach based on known fall and fracture risk factors might be preferable. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Geriatric Medicine: Towards Personalized Medicine)
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