Ideal presurgical preparation for the elderly asthmatic

People over 65 years of age constitute an ever-increasing proportion of patients undergoing operations and are more likely to suffer pulmonary complications postoperatively. Elderly patients with pulmonary diseases such as asthma are at particularly high risk owing to inability to clear secretions and take a deep breath. Acute asthma attacks and infection should be treated before pa-tients undergo operations. When the patient is clinically stable, pulmonary function tests and blood gases are important to assess baseline function and guide preoperative therapy with bronchodilators and other adjunctive measures designed to decrease post-operative pulmonary complications. This article discusses the effects of aging and asthma on the lung and how it relates to postoperative pulmonary complications.