Skip to main content
Canadian Family Physician logoLink to Canadian Family Physician
. 1991 Oct;37:2187–2194.

Comprehensive Geriatric Assessment in the Office

Uncovering all the problems of geriatric patients

Laurie RM Pereles, Neil GH Boyle
PMCID: PMC2145701  PMID: 21229091

Abstract

Because of their increased incidence of illness and disability, geriatric patients require extra time and diligence to assess and track medical problems. This article describes a comprehensive geriatirc assessment, organized on a one-page, easily updated checklist, that can be used to generate a medical and functional problem list and a risk assessment.

Full text

PDF
2187

Images in this article

Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. Abrams R. C., Alexopoulos G. S. Substance abuse in the elderly: alcohol and prescription drugs. Hosp Community Psychiatry. 1987 Dec;38(12):1285–1287. doi: 10.1176/ps.38.12.1285. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. Amery A., Birkenhäger W., Brixko P., Bulpitt C., Clement D., Deruyttere M., De Schaepdryver A., Dollery C., Fagard R., Forette F. Mortality and morbidity results from the European Working Party on High Blood Pressure in the Elderly trial. Lancet. 1985 Jun 15;1(8442):1349–1354. doi: 10.1016/s0140-6736(85)91783-0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. Andriole G. L., Catalona W. J. Early diagnosis of prostate cancer. Urol Clin North Am. 1987 Nov;14(4):657–661. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Aronow W. S., Herzig A. H., Etienne F., D'Alba P., Ronquillo J. 41-month follow-up of risk factors correlated with new coronary events in 708 elderly patients. J Am Geriatr Soc. 1989 Jun;37(6):501–506. doi: 10.1111/j.1532-5415.1989.tb05679.x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. Beers M. H., Ouslander J. G. Risk factors in geriatric drug prescribing. A practical guide to avoiding problems. Drugs. 1989 Jan;37(1):105–112. doi: 10.2165/00003495-198937010-00008. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. Benfante R., Reed D. Is elevated serum cholesterol level a risk factor for coronary heart disease in the elderly? JAMA. 1990 Jan 19;263(3):393–396. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. Bohannon N. J. Diabetes in the elderly. A unique set of management challenges. Postgrad Med. 1988 Oct;84(5):283–295. doi: 10.1080/00325481.1988.11700451. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. Brown L. J., Potter J. F., Foster B. G. Caregiver burden should be evaluated during geriatric assessment. J Am Geriatr Soc. 1990 Apr;38(4):455–460. doi: 10.1111/j.1532-5415.1990.tb03545.x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. Clarfield A. M. The reversible dementias: do they reverse? Ann Intern Med. 1988 Sep 15;109(6):476–486. doi: 10.7326/0003-4819-109-6-476. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. Cooper J. K., Gardner C. Effect of aging on serum albumin. J Am Geriatr Soc. 1989 Nov;37(11):1039–1042. doi: 10.1111/j.1532-5415.1989.tb06917.x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. Curtis J. R., Geller G., Stokes E. J., Levine D. M., Moore R. D. Characteristics, diagnosis, and treatment of alcoholism in elderly patients. J Am Geriatr Soc. 1989 Apr;37(4):310–316. doi: 10.1111/j.1532-5415.1989.tb05496.x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  12. Denke M. A., Grundy S. M. Hypercholesterolemia in elderly persons: resolving the treatment dilemma. Ann Intern Med. 1990 May 15;112(10):780–792. doi: 10.7326/0003-4819-112-10-780. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  13. Gerson M. C., Hurst J. M., Hertzberg V. S., Doogan P. A., Cochran M. B., Lim S. P., McCall N., Adolph R. J. Cardiac prognosis in noncardiac geriatric surgery. Ann Intern Med. 1985 Dec;103(6 ):832–837. doi: 10.7326/0003-4819-103-6-832. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  14. Goldberg A. P., Coon P. J. Non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus in the elderly. Influence of obesity and physical inactivity. Endocrinol Metab Clin North Am. 1987 Dec;16(4):843–865. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  15. Grobin W. A longitudinal study of impaired glucose tolerance and diabetes mellitus in the aged. J Am Geriatr Soc. 1989 Dec;37(12):1127–1134. doi: 10.1111/j.1532-5415.1989.tb06676.x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  16. Herbst K. G., Humphrey C. Hearing impairment and mental state in the elderly living at home. Br Med J. 1980 Oct 4;281(6245):903–905. doi: 10.1136/bmj.281.6245.903. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  17. Hermanson B., Omenn G. S., Kronmal R. A., Gersh B. J. Beneficial six-year outcome of smoking cessation in older men and women with coronary artery disease. Results from the CASS registry. N Engl J Med. 1988 Nov 24;319(21):1365–1369. doi: 10.1056/NEJM198811243192101. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  18. Hilton P., Stanton S. L. Algorithmic method for assessing urinary incontinence in elderly women. Br Med J (Clin Res Ed) 1981 Mar 21;282(6268):940–942. doi: 10.1136/bmj.282.6268.940. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  19. Katz P. R., Gutman S. I., Richman G., Karuza J., Bartholomew W. R., Baum J. Erythrocyte sedimentation rate and C-reactive protein compared in the elderly. Clin Chem. 1989 Mar;35(3):466–468. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  20. Larochelle P., Bass M. J., Birkett N. J., De Champlain J., Myers M. G. Recommendations from the Consensus Conference on Hypertension in the Elderly. CMAJ. 1986 Oct 1;135(7):741–745. [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  21. Lichtenstein M. J., Bess F. H., Logan S. A. Validation of screening tools for identifying hearing-impaired elderly in primary care. JAMA. 1988 May 20;259(19):2875–2878. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  22. Macphee G. J., Crowther J. A., McAlpine C. H. A simple screening test for hearing impairment in elderly patients. Age Ageing. 1988 Sep;17(5):347–351. doi: 10.1093/ageing/17.5.347. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  23. Murray M. D., Darnell J., Weinberger M., Martz B. L. Factors contributing to medication noncompliance in elderly public housing tenants. Drug Intell Clin Pharm. 1986 Feb;20(2):146–152. doi: 10.1177/106002808602000210. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  24. Ouslander J. G., Leach G. E., Staskin D. R. Simplified tests of lower urinary tract function in the evaluation of geriatric urinary incontinence. J Am Geriatr Soc. 1989 Aug;37(8):706–714. doi: 10.1111/j.1532-5415.1989.tb02231.x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  25. Robie P. W. Cancer screening in the elderly. J Am Geriatr Soc. 1989 Sep;37(9):888–893. doi: 10.1111/j.1532-5415.1989.tb02272.x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  26. Rock R. C. Effects of age on common laboratory tests. Geriatrics. 1984 Jun;39(6):57–60. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  27. Sachs D. P. Cigarette smoking. Health effects and cessation strategies. Clin Geriatr Med. 1986 May;2(2):337–362. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  28. Shuran M., Nelson R. A. Updated nutritional assessment and support of the elderly. Geriatrics. 1986 Jul;41(7):48–70. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  29. Sims R. V., Steinmann W. C., McConville J. H., King L. R., Zwick W. C., Schwartz J. S. The clinical effectiveness of pneumococcal vaccine in the elderly. Ann Intern Med. 1988 May;108(5):653–657. doi: 10.7326/0003-4819-108-5-653. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  30. Tabár L., Fagerberg C. J., Gad A., Baldetorp L., Holmberg L. H., Gröntoft O., Ljungquist U., Lundström B., Månson J. C., Eklund G. Reduction in mortality from breast cancer after mass screening with mammography. Randomised trial from the Breast Cancer Screening Working Group of the Swedish National Board of Health and Welfare. Lancet. 1985 Apr 13;1(8433):829–832. doi: 10.1016/s0140-6736(85)92204-4. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  31. Tinetti M. E., Ginter S. F. Identifying mobility dysfunctions in elderly patients. Standard neuromuscular examination or direct assessment? JAMA. 1988 Feb 26;259(8):1190–1193. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  32. Wandless I., Mucklow J. C., Smith A., Prudham D. Compliance with prescribed medicines: a study of elderly patients in the community. J R Coll Gen Pract. 1979 Jul;29(204):391–396. [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  33. Weinstein B. E., Ventry I. M. Hearing impairment and social isolation in the elderly. J Speech Hear Res. 1982 Dec;25(4):593–599. doi: 10.1044/jshr.2504.593. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  34. Wolf-Klein G. P., Silverstone F. A., Levy A. P., Brod M. S. Screening for Alzheimer's disease by clock drawing. J Am Geriatr Soc. 1989 Aug;37(8):730–734. doi: 10.1111/j.1532-5415.1989.tb02234.x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  35. Zauber N. P., Zauber A. G. Hematologic data of healthy very old people. JAMA. 1987 Apr 24;257(16):2181–2184. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from Canadian Family Physician are provided here courtesy of College of Family Physicians of Canada

RESOURCES