Influence of old age on survival after prolonged mechanical ventilation

BACKGROUND: While the proportion of elderly people in society is increasing, little is known about the influence of old age on survival after prolonged mechanical ventilation. METHODS: A retrospective follow-up study of 120 patients who had been mechanically ventilated for at least 10 days was performed with a follow-up of up to 5 years. In-hospital survival and post-hospital survival were documented. Also, the functional status of survivors was recorded. The predictive value of age and several other clinical and laboratory parameters for outcome was analyzed. RESULTS: The in-hospital survival of the 120 patients studied was 35%. While age below 50 years was associated with improved survival, age was not predictive of in-hospital survival for patients over 50 years of age. The post-hospital survival was 77% 1 year after discharge, with almost all survivors being functionally independent. Again, old age was not predictive of survival. CONCLUSIONS: For patients aged 50 years or older, patient age does not predict survival after prolonged mechanical ventilation. Even very old survivors have a reasonable life expectancy and regain full functional status.