According to the American Hospital Association (AHA), there will be an uptick in certain illnesses, conditions, and procedures that they will be performing as a result in this demographic shift. Among the statistics they cite:
● 25 percent of Baby Boomers will be living with diabetes
● Nearly 50 percent will be living with arthritis
● Knee replacement surgeries will be performed eight times more in 2030 than they are today
It’s no surprise that Baby Boomers are changing the face of healthcare and the healthcare industry. This demographic has a combined wealth of $7 trillion, with increased spending going towards a range of procedures that will improve their quality of life, treat chronic conditions, or even serve as a way to maintain the appearance of youth, as is the case with cosmetic surgery.
The uptick in procedures is attributed to a phenomenon that some doctors call “Boomeritis,” as Baby Boomers have become the first generation to attempt to maintain youth and vitality in spite of aging bodies.
The changes are already evident, with the numbers of procedures performed for this generation increasing every year. Among the most common procedures for Baby Boomers:
Cataract Surgery
3 Million Annually
Nearly 21 million Americans over the age of 40 are affected by cataracts, a condition that causes a clouding in the lens of the eye or the lens capsule. Issues can range in severity from mild vision impairment to complete blindness. Of those, 3 million Americans will undergo cataract surgery each year, a minimally invasive procedure with a 98 percent success rate for correcting vision loss. According to Mayo Clinic, this procedure was performed in 2011 at a rate of 1,100 people per 100,000, and the rate of women having the procedure performed was significantly higher than in men.
Knee Replacements
621,029 Annually
Number two on the Baby Boomer procedure list, knee replacement surgeries are expected to continue to increase. According to the AHA, they predict an 800 percent rise by 2030. Women are more likely to have knee replacement surgery, both because they are more likely to go to a doctor to deal with knee discomfort and because they are more likely to develop an autoimmune condition called rheumatoid arthritis, which attacks the joints and damages the knees. Doctors are still wary of treating younger patients (especially those under 50) with these procedures. As the procedure wears out, it needs to be repeated, and each surgery comes with risks - which range from infections and blood clots to reactions to anesthesia.
As these procedures become more common, the medical industry has focused on eliminating the one-size-fits-all approach to artificial knees, focusing instead on using computer imaging that allows them to map out a person’s individual knee dimensions, making it possible to create an entirely custom knee that suits the individual patient. In addition, knee replacements are being constructed from newer materials that will allow them to last longer, without the need to have the procedure repeated as often.
Angioplasty/Stent
291,289 Annually
Once a procedure performed on a limited number of patients with specific criteria, angioplasties and stents are becoming more popular as a minimally invasive, preventative procedure to clear blocked arteries and keep them open. An angioplasty works by inserting a small balloon-like tool into a narrowed artery to open it up. While these procedures worked temporarily, many patients (one in five) found themselves having to have the procedure repeated. That is so the metal stent - a device that’s inserted into the artery - physically keeps the artery open. Newer stents, which are coated with drugs, both minimize your chances of needing another angioplasty procedure by up to 90 percent while delivering heart medications directly to the artery walls.
Now, doctors have developed biodegradable stents, which will remain in the artery long enough to reform it, but will break down over time. These may be preferable because patients who have metal stents must take blood thinners to minimize their risk of developing life-threatening blood clots.
Hip Replacements
288,471 Annually
Following behind knees, hips are the most common replacement surgery seen in Baby Boomers. These procedures become necessary as a normal part of the aging process (with longer life expectancies resulting in the body breaking down more during the course of a lifetime than in times with shorter life expectancies). These procedures, too, are on the rise: they will likely increase in frequency by nearly 150 percent by 2030.
While the rate at which they are performed has increased, the techniques for performing them have improved significantly. In the 1980s, an incision for a hip replacement would have been about 24 centimeters long. Today, the same result requires only a four centimeter incision, and surgeons are using an approach to the procedure that involves moving muscles to access the hip, rather than cutting through them, which cuts down dramatically on recovery times and gives patients a better outcome.
These procedures, while expected to increase in the near future, may soon become a thing of the past. New advancements have been made in technologies that can treat or repair hips that are beginning to deteriorate before they require a replacement.
Gallbladder Removal
82,816 Annually
The gallbladder is a largely overlooked organ that forms the bile that our bodies use to break down fatty foods - at least, until we develop the painful symptoms that accompany gallbladder disease or gallstones. These symptoms can include shooting pain in the shoulder, abdominal cramping, and gastrointestinal symptoms, which are aggravated when eating rich or fatty foods.
Twice as many of these procedures will be performed on women as on men, and these conditions may affect as much as 10 percent of the population. Thankfully, as they are performed with greater frequency, new techniques have cut down on hospital stays and recovery times, and now trials are underway to test surgeries that require no incision, but instead involve removing the organ by accessing it through the esophagus.
Face Lifts
26,635 Annually
Juan Ponce de Leon isn’t the only person who was obsessed with finding the Fountain of Youth. As our population continues to age, the industries that cater to maintaining beauty and youth, which include plastic surgery and anti-aging skin care businesses, are seeing a boom in business. Facelifts, or rhytidectomies, are the most common procedures which will be performed on Baby Boomers. These procedures involve making incisions around the hairline, jowels, or neck to trim away excess skin. In 2012, a record number of cosmetic procedures were performed - nearly 15 million in total.
As the need has increased, so have alternative options to traditional plastic surgery. Dermatologists can use filler injections to combat the loss of collagen in the skin alone or in combination with a special ultrasound mating that tightens the skin.
As our population continues to age, so has our need for both medically necessary and cosmetic surgeries. The Baby Boomer generation, with its active, older lifestyle demands, has driven the medical field to respond with vast improvements in procedures, making them less invasive and taking steps to cut down on recovery times.
From ophthalmology to orthopedics and beyond, Baby Boomers can be thanked for continuing to change the face of modern medicine.