Older age doesn't affect time spent in hospital before death

The number of days spent in hospital before death does not increase with older age. Reviewing more than 250 000 in hospital deaths during 1999-2000 in England, Dixon and colleagues (p 1288) found that, on average, patients were admitted 3.6 times, and for 23 days, in the last three years of life. The length of stay increased with age up to 45 years old, but was fairly stable thereafter. Patients use more healthcare resources because they are dying, say the authors, not because they are older.