geriatrics
History Taking in the Older Adult
Medical History
When asking patients about their past medical history, a clinician should ask about disorders that used to be more common (eg, rheumatic fever, poliomyelitis) and about outdated treatments (eg, pneumothorax therapy for tuberculosis, mercury for syphilis). A history of immunizations (eg, COVID-19, influenza, pneumococcus, tetanus), adverse reactions to immunizations, and skin test results for tuberculosis is needed. If patients recall having surgery but do not remember the procedure or its purpose, surgical records should be obtained if possible. Clinicians should ask questions designed to systematically review each body area or system (review of systems) to check for other disorders and common problems that patients may have forgotten to mention (see Clues to Disorders in Older Patients ). 