RESUMEN
<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To analyze the relative risk factors of elderly patients with total gastrectomy for gastric cancer.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>The risk factors for hospital death and postoperative complications in 131 elderly patients undergoing total gastrectomy for gastric cancer from Aug. 1994 to Aug. 2004 were analyzed retrospectively.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The risk factors for hospital death and postoperative complications included coexistent diseases, hemoglobin level less than 80 g/L, albumin level less than 35 g/L, body mass index(BMI) less than 18.5 kg/m (2), intraoperative blood loss more than 1000 ml, operating time longer than 5 h, combined resection of the spleen or pancreas. The relative risks were 1.57, 1.74, 2.97, 4.23, 2.21, 2.28, 3.80 respectively for hospital death, and 1.50, 1.90, 2.38, 2.12, 2.45, 1.66, 3.41 for postoperative complications.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>The risk factors of the elderly patients with total gastrectomy for gastric cancer should be considered carefully during the perioperative period. It can increase the security of the procedure to control these risk factors.</p>