What Causes Sudden Weight Loss In An Elderly Person?

Posted on Sat, 8 Apr 2017

Question: I am in seemingly good health @ age 76. Over the last month or so I have lost about 10 pounds. I am just short of 6 feet tall and as of this morning, I weigh 140+ pounds, down about 10 pounds. What to do?

Answered by Dr. Dr. Happykumar Kagathara (33 minutes later)

Brief Answer:
Sudden weight loss requires evaluation

Detailed Answer:
Hello,
I can understand your concern for sudden weight loss.

Sudden rapid weight loss warrants further evaluation to rule out any underlying disease.
It would be a tiresome list of investigations if a person do approach with symptom of only weight loss.
It is necessary to note if any other associated symptoms i.e. reduced appetite, change in bowel habits, abdominal pain, jaundice, early satiety, pain at any specific site, history of smoking/alcohol.

If there are no other associated symptoms, then it is recommended to perform basic laboratory tests along with USG abdomen and chest X-ray.
Progressive age, sudden weight loss and decreased appetite generally have higher predictive values for malignancy.

Hope I answered your query. If you have any further doubts, I would be happy to help you.
Have a nice day!

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Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Arnab Banerjee