Background
: Recently, the frequency of the diseases in the geriatrics is on the increase gradually as increasing of the aged population. The acute abdomen which incurs danger if an adequate management is not performend under the exact diagnosis in the geriatric patients is common. This study analyze the factors influencing on postoperative complications and mortality for decreasing the rate of them.

Methods : we analyzed age and sex distribution, disease distribution, coexisting diseases, preoperative phyical status, anesthesia time, it's complication and mortality, complication distribution and causes of death of 105 cases of the geriatric patients undergone emergency operation for acute abdomen on from Jan. 1991 to Aug. 1993 at Seoul Christian General Hospital.

Results : The sex ratio between male and female was 1:1.2, the range of age was from 65 to 87 years. 70-74 years was most common(31.4%) among the classifications of the age. In distrubutions of diseases, acute appendicitis was the commonest(35.2%), hepatobiliary disease was 28.6%, and upper GI tract disease was 18.1%. The coexisting diseases were found in 68.8%, of patients and cardiovascular disease was the commonest(28.2%). In preperative physical status, Class II was the commonest(40.0%) and Class V was 2.9%. In anesthesia time, the number of cases between one and two hours was 48 cases and was the commonest(45.7%) and that below 2 hours was 59 cases(56.2%). Postoperative complications were found in 31.4% of patients, pulmonary complication was the commonest, and the next was intestinal obstruction. The mortality rate was 11.4% and multiple organ failure was the most common in the cause of death, the others were sepsis and acute respiratory failure etc.
In the analysis of factors affecting complication and mortality, the age was not related to the complication and mortality. The complication was the highest in patients with colorectal disease and the mortality was the highest in patients with strangulated hernia. There was a large number of complications in the patients who have had coexisting diseases and also the mortality rate was higher among them, but there were no significant differences statistically. The higher the Class, the higher the complication and the mortality rate on the preoperative physical status. There were more frequent complications in the anesthesia time above 2 hours. The mortality rate was higher in the anesthesia time below 2 hours but there was no significant differences statistically.

Conclusion : Consequently, postoperative complication and mortality in the geriatric patients were not related to age, but associated with primary diseases, coexisting diseases, preoperatice physical status and anesthesia time. Therefore it is thought hat postoperative complication and mortality will be decreased, if primary physicians make every efforts to diagnose early primary disease, concern about the existence of coexisting disease, improve the preoperative physical status, and decrease the anesthesia time in management of geriatric patients.