We live in an aging society, which is foremost caused by increasing life expectancy, next other factors. In concordance, at least the sheer number of older patients increases, too. When those older persons become acutely ill, an increasing number requires and receives intensive care unit (ICU) treatment. In the intensive care medicine setting, 15 % of patients in an ICU are >80 years old, and 1 % exceed an age of 90 [1–3]. In Germany, currently approximately 40 % of all patients presenting to emergency departments are aged 65 years and older [4].
