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Abuse of Older Persons

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Learning Geriatric Medicine

Part of the book series: Practical Issues in Geriatrics ((PIG))

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Abstract

Abuse of older persons (physical, sexual, financial, or psychological), neglect, and self-neglect are major public health problems, sometimes underdiagnosed and overlooked because of a poor clinician education regarding this “geriatric giant.” The recognition of mistreatment or suspected abuse in older persons needs the careful evaluation of relationships with caregivers to identify both risk factors and warning signs. About 95% of older people live with their spouses, children, siblings, or other relatives or paid caregivers; these are usually the potential abusers. Although some cases of abuse of older persons (AOP) have criminal aspects, often the abuse is subtle, and the distinction between normal interpersonal stress and abuse is not easy to discern. Appropriate preventive interventions aim to protect the most vulnerable older persons at risk.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Modena and Reggio Emilia, Modena, Italy

    Gianfranco Salvioli & Chiara Mussi

Authors
  1. Gianfranco Salvioli
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  2. Chiara Mussi
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Correspondence to Gianfranco Salvioli .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Internal Medicine, Medical University of Graz, Graz, Austria

    Regina Roller-Wirnsberger

  2. Institute for Biomedicine of Ageing Friedrich-Alexander-University Erlangen-Nuremberg, Erlangen, Germany

    Katrin Singler

  3. Ageing Clinical Research Department Medicine II, University Hospital of Cologne, Cologne, Germany

    Maria Cristina Polidori

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Salvioli, G., Mussi, C. (2018). Abuse of Older Persons. In: Roller-Wirnsberger, R., Singler, K., Polidori, M. (eds) Learning Geriatric Medicine. Practical Issues in Geriatrics. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-61997-2_35

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-61997-2_35

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-61996-5

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-61997-2

  • eBook Packages: MedicineMedicine (R0)

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