Geriatric Gastroenterology

Aging trends in the United States and Europe continue to demonstrate an increasingly older society, a trend that is unlikely to change for decades to come. This trend would render it prudent for health care providers to better prepare for the changes in society and their health needs. The current number of older adults (aged over 65), about 13% of the U.S. population, is expected to grow to over 20% in the next 20 years. Preparation for the changes in society involves provision of training for current and future generations of physicians to deal with health problems of older adults.


Training programs in internal medicine and gastroenterology are required to deal with disorders of aging in the present day hospitalized, long-term care and community older adults. Physiological changes and disease processes in older adults differ significantly from those of the young; these are aspects that trainees and practicing physicians need to have an understanding of. Yet texts devoted to gastrointestinal illness in the elderly are scant at this stage and are clearly in demand.


This text provides a comprehensive overview of gastrointestinal disease and disorders in older adults. Divided into sixteen sections, this major reference work covers all aspects of gastroenterology as it pertains to older adults, including epidemiology, gastrointestinal physiology, motility disorders, luminal disorders, hepatobiliary disease, systemic manifestations, neoplastic disorders, gastrointestinal bleeding, and gastrointestinal cancer. In addition to fully revised chapters from the previous edition of Geriatric Gastroenterology, the latest edition features new chapters on drug injury to the GI tract, gut microbiota and aging, dysphagia, diabetes and its manifestations, and nursing for GI disorders. Nutrition and related disorders, as well as capsule endoscopy and its utility in the geriatric population, are also highlighted in the text. Presented in a simple, easy to read format, the volume includes numerous figures, tables, and key points to enable ease of understanding.

C.S. Pitchumoni, MD  
Saint Peter's Healthcare System
New Brunswick, NJ 
USA


T.S. Dharmarajan, MD
Montefiore Medical Center. Wakefield Campus
Albert Einstein College of Medicine
Bronx, NY 
USA


C.S. Pitchumoni is Associate Program Director of the Internal Medicine Residency Program and Chief of Division of Gastroenterology, Hepatology, and Clinical Nutrition.


He  has more four decades of teaching experience and has been recognized as an excellent teacher by students, residents, and fellows in Gastroenterology. He is board certified in Internal Medicine, Gastroenterology and Clinical Nutrition, and has a Masters in Public Health.


He is Adjunct Professor of Medicine at New York Medical College and Clinical Professor of Medicine at Rutgers, Robert Wood Johnson Medical School and Drexel University College of Medicine. He has been nationally recognized by American College of Physicians as well as American College of Gastroenterology with Mastership of the colleges. He has authored over 200 publications and 100 chapters in various textbooks. His research in the field of pancreatic diseases is recognized by various professional organizations and he is on the editorial board of a number of journals. He has edited four major text books in gastroenterology.


Dr. Pitchumoni came to Saint Peter’s University Hospital in 2002 after many years if experience in teaching, research, and administration at New York Medical College.




T.S. Dharmarajan, MD, is the Clinical Director, Division of Geriatrics and the Program Director, Geriatric Medicine Fellowship Program at the Wakefield Campus of Montefiore, the university hospital of Albert Einstein College of Medicine. He is currently Professor of Clinical Medicine, Einstein, and also an Adjunct Professor of Medicine, New York Medical College.


Dr. Dharmarajan is certified by the American Boards in Internal Medicine, Nephrology and Geriatric Medicine; he has been a Fellow of the American College of Physicians, Fellow of the American Geriatrics Society and a member of the American Society of Nephrology. In April 2013, he was awarded the prestigious Mastership of the American College of Physicians, an honor accorded only to a handful of physicians in the country each year.


Dr. Dharmarajan was instrumental in developing a large inpatient geriatric medicine program at Our Lady of Mercy Medical Center in the Bronx (currently Montefiore Hospital, Wakefield Campus), with recognized clinical, academic and research components, including a fully accredited fellowship program in Geriatrics with a maximum complement of 10 fellows.


Dr. Dharmarajan co-edited the textbook Clinical Geriatrics (CRC Press / Parthenon Publishing) released in 2003. He co-edited his second textbook, Geriatric Gastroenterology (Springer), released in July 2012. Dr. Dharmarajan has authored 23 and 17 chapters respectively in the two books. The latter was a best seller in the Springer category of textbooks for 2012 and 2013. His publications in peer-reviewed journals and textbooks total nearly 200. He has about 500 scientific presentations (abstracts) in inter-mural, county, state, national and international meetings. His research interests focus primarily in the areas of geriatrics, nutrition, anemia and anticoagulation. He has been a Principal Investigator for several research projects, including national studies for the AMDA Foundation. Besides winning the Howard Gutterman Award for best research project in the Annual AMDA (2006) meeting, several abstracts were winners in state or national society meetings.


Dr. Dharmarajan is a regular speaker at local, national and international meetings. Some of his numerous recognitions and awards in Medicine include: "Teacher of the Year"; "Peer to Peer" recognition by the Bronx County Society; Dedication as Teacher and Mentor to young Physicians in the Bronx (from American Assn. of Physicians of Indian origin), Unparalleled Leadership in the Medical Community for medicine and research (from the Bronx County Society) and others. In April 2013, he was featured on the cover of AgingWell magazine, as one of five noteworthy geriatricians in the country.


From 2010 to 2013, Dr. Dharmarajan has been the President of the Montefiore Physician Council (Wakefield Campus) and a member of the Montefiore Executive Committee.