Optimizing surgical care for older adults: Innovations, outcomes, and evolving challenges

The field of geriatric surgery is at the forefront of a major shift in healthcare as populations age globally. With an increasing proportion of older adults undergoing surgical interventions, healthcare providers are confronted with unique challenges that stem from age-associated frailty, multiple comorbidities, and complex psychosocial dynamics. Recent studies highlight that older adults face higher rates of postoperative complications, prolonged recoveries, and distinct patterns of functional decline, underscoring the limitations of traditional surgical care models. Despite growing research and clinical innovation, optimizing outcomes for this vulnerable cohort remains an unresolved and pressing issue, with significant variability in assessment, perioperative planning, and interdisciplinary integration across healthcare systems.

This Research Topic aims to deepen the understanding of how surgical care can be tailored to best serve older adults. We seek to address critical questions such as: Which assessment tools most accurately identify frailty and risk in older patients? How can perioperative management strategies be personalized to account for geriatric needs? What models of interdisciplinary collaboration yield the best surgical and functional outcomes? By gathering research that ranges from basic science to health system interventions, we hope to catalyze transformative advances in the preoperative, perioperative, and postoperative care of older adults, ultimately informing evidence-based practice and policy.

To gather further insights in advancing surgical care for older adults, we welcome articles emphasizing clinically relevant, system-level, and patient-centered themes. Submissions may address, but are not limited to, the following areas:

- Tools and strategies for preoperative assessment and frailty identification
- Perioperative management tailored to older adult physiology and psychosocial context
- Interdisciplinary care models (including surgical, geriatric, anesthetic, and rehabilitation collaboration)
- Evaluation and improvement of surgical outcomes in elderly populations
- Innovations in anesthetic techniques, pain management, and prevention of postoperative delirium
- Functional recovery trajectories, rehabilitation protocols, and quality-of-life assessments
- Patient-reported outcomes and frameworks for shared surgical decision-making
- Health-system and policy innovations to expand access and enhance safety in geriatric surgery
- Ethical and educational considerations for care teams managing older surgical patients.

Article types and fees

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Brief Research Report
• Case Report
• Classification
• Clinical Trial
• Curriculum, Instruction, and Pedagogy
• Editorial
• FAIR² Data
• FAIR² DATA Direct Submission
• General Commentary
• ... View all formats

Articles that are accepted for publication by our external editors following rigorous peer review incur a publishing fee charged to Authors, institutions, or funders.

Article types

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Brief Research Report
• Case Report
• Classification
• Clinical Trial
• Curriculum, Instruction, and Pedagogy
• Editorial
• FAIR² Data
• FAIR² DATA Direct Submission
• General Commentary
• Hypothesis and Theory
• Methods
• Mini Review
• Opinion
• Original Research
• Perspective
• Review
• Study Protocol
• Systematic Review
• Technology and Code

Keywords: geriatric surgery, frailty, perioperative care, interdisciplinary models, surgical outcomes, aging population, functional recovery

Important note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.