Prosthetic joint infections in the elderly

Recent age-projection showed that the number of elderly is expected to rise significantly over the next decades worldwide. Accordingly, the prevalence of chronic and degenerative diseases will increase, among them osteoarthritis, resulting in more and older patients undergoing total joint arthroplasty and thereby also being at risk for associated complications. Among those, prosthetic joint infections are feared as threatening complication with a mortality approaching 8 % and causing long-term antibiotic therapy, immobilization and often account for operative revision.

This review summarizes epidemiological, microbiological, and therapeutic aspects of prosthetic joint infection in the elderly population.

Considering the increase in the number of PJIs in the forthcoming years in most countries, a common action to reduce the associated morbidity and mortality is strongly encouraged in Europe.