Gynecological disorders in geriatric emergency medicine

Emergency physicians must be competent in caring for elderly women because they constitute the fastest growing segment of the population in the United States. Familiarity with acute geriatric gynecologic issues is crucial to providing satisfactory health care for these patients with complaints relating to incontinence, pelvic floor dysfunction, and other gynecologic conditions. Vigilant suspicion for malignancy should be maintained in facilities that service patients without primary health care or insurance. This article provides a systematic approach to emergency department management of common geriatric gynecological conditions. Anatomical and physiological changes are discussed, as well as the geriatric pelvic examination, malignancy, urinary tract infection, incontinence, pelvic organ prolapse, and vulvovaginitis.