Syncope

It is estimated that 4.2% of hospital admissions between the ages of 65 and 74 are due to orthostatic hypotension (OH); this increases to 30.5% in patients older than 75 years. (1) Polypharmacy and carotid sinus syndrome are main causes of syncope in particularly among older people.(1) In the Framingham study(2) the incidence of self-reported syncope was 6.2:1000 persons/year. This prevalence increased to 11% for patients in their seventies and to more than 17% in those older than 80 years. A recent study in Utah revealed that 1 in 10 in-patients have syncope. (3) As older people have the higher incidence of syncope ultimately there are more roles for geriatricians in managing these cases.