[Elderly patients with an abdominal aortic aneurysm; preoperative frailty-screening and a multidisciplinary approach]

Aneurysm of the abdominal aorta is common and can be treated with endovascular repair, open surgical repair or conservative treatment. Risk-stratification and treatment decision-making can be complex in frail patients and depends largely on anatomy, life-expectancy and functional capacity. Currently, risk-stratification in the Netherlands is primarily based on comorbidities and age. Insight in a patient's resilience could provide important additional information. For this reason, St. Antonius hospital has implemented an Anaesthesia Geriatric Evaluation (AGE) to screen for frailty in high risk vascular surgery patients. Results of frailty-screening are discussed in a multi-disciplinary team (MDT) to assess perioperative risk and compose a personal treatment plan. This paper presents a case-series of three patients to illustrate the additional value of MDT care and frailty-screening in a high-risk vascular surgery population.