How old is old?

Society has an obsession with age, and using the term "old" is controversial. Despite the almost universal fear of the aging process, there is no universal definition.


My own personal definition of "old" is: always 10 years from where you are now. A decade always seems like such a long time, and the great thing about this definition is that the cut point is moving with you. I can only assume my grandmother had a similar policy, as even at the age of 88 she absolutely refused to consider moving to a nursing home or assisted-living facility because "that's for OLD people."

This made me start thinking about how different medical specialties see "old."Most literature I've seen uses 65 as the definition for elderly.

Here are my impressions for what each specialty thinks of as old:


Medicine: When the patient develops an obsession with describing their bowel movements

Cardiology: 65 - when your age is enough to bump up your risk even without other medical conditions

GI: 50 - colonoscopy time!

OB/GYN: 35. the point at which you're automatically high risk in pregnancy due to age.

Anesthesia: 65, your age puts you at greater risk with sedation

Surgery: When you include the word elderly in your note

Pediatrics: 19. Time to find a new doctor.

Geriatrics: Is geriatrics consulted? If yes, patient is old.

Radiology: When any finding can be attributed to "age-related"