[Medical or surgical treatment of the elderly bleeding ulcer patient].
In recent years there has been a distinct decline in the total number of operations for ulcers while the number performed for ulcerous complications has remained more or less constant. Hesitation between medical and surgical treatment most frequently arises in the case of bleeding especially when the patient is elderly. A retrospective study is conducted on 526 ulcer patients encountered in 1976-84 and a comparison is made with the literature as a means of identifying the limitations of conservative treatment. Certain parameters of possible use in the treatment of bleeding ulcers in the elderly are identified.