The Oldest Old

Abstract
In the United States, as well as in other developed countries, the elderly population is getting older. From 1960 to 1990, the number of Americans 85 years of age or older increased by 232 percent, whereas the number 65 years of age or older increased by 89 percent and the total population grew by just 39 percent1. Currently, 3.5 million U.S. citizens are 85 or older2. In this age group, known as the oldest old, women outnumber men by 2.6 to 1. At the age of 85, life expectancy is 6.4 years for white women and 5.2 years . . .