Is shivering threshold during spinal anesthesia reduced in elderly patients?
Age-dependent inhibition of autonomic thermoregulatory control in the elderly might be expected to result in hypothermia. That it usually does not suggests that behavioral regulation (e.g., increasing ambient temperature, dressing warmly) compensates for impaired autonomic control. Elderly patients undergoing spinal anesthesia, however, may be especially at risk of hypothermia because low core temperatures may not trigger protective autonomic responses. Furthermore, hypothermia in the elderly given regional anesthesia may not be perceived by the patient (who typically feels less cold after induction of the block), or by the anesthesiologist (who does not observe shivering). Consequently, temperature monitoring and management usually is indicated in these patients.
Nonagenarians with severe bradyarrhythmias could retain the same life expectancies as those without bradyarrhythmias through PPM implantations. Extremely old age (≥90 years) should not be a barrier for PPM implants when indications are present.