Take heart attacks. Less than half of elderly people report the chest pain most middle-aged victims feel. Instead they may complain of vague symptoms such as labored breathing, numbness, tingling or dizziness. Or consider congestive heart failure. It may cause leg swelling that slows an older person's walking long before the telltale shortness of breath most doctors are looking for.
Seniors often have numerous chronic diseases, and a treatment that helps one can worsen another.
There's poor coordination between doctors. Geriatricians are specially trained to deal with those unique senior problems, and coordinate proper care among competing specialists. Yet there are only about 9,500 certified geriatricians, less than half the estimated 20,000 needed to care for the frailest of the 34 million elderly Americans. As for other doctors, a survey found one-third of recent medical school graduates believed their eldercare instruction was inadequate. By 2030, the American Geriatrics Society estimates more than 36,000 geriatricians will be needed as the over-65 population approaches 70 million.