[Vascular surgery in the elderly : What is possible? What is reasonable?]

Nowadays vascular treatment of the elderly is a great challenge. Following the demographic change patients in the field of vascular surgery are becoming older and sicker. In addition to the actual main vascular pathology, the average patient arrives with a series of additional diagnoses that have an impact on the perioperative strategy, surgery and outcome of patients. This strategy becomes more and more challenging because on one hand there will be soon be no limits to treatment, which is attributable to the progress in endovascular surgery and on the other hand the question arises whether the feasible is reasonable? Within the scope of this article the problems of treatment of the elderly are presented and strategies and decisions for an individualized optimal therapy are proposed.