As per tradition, the 2024 edition of the Cologne Symposia on Ageing Medicine has been opened by a gerontological keynote lecture followed by presentations on relevant clinical aspects and consequences of the rapidly progressing global demographic transition. We were delighted that Professor Hans-Werner Wahl, Project Director at the Network Aging Research of Heidelberg University and Senior Researcher at the Institute of Psychology of Heidelberg University accepted our invitation. We truly enjoyed his presentation “Altersbilder in der Gerontologie und Geriatrie – Neue Befunde zu einem alten Thema”, rich in new perspectives on the recent biologic, demographic, clinical and psychosocial progress related to global aging. In a society shaped by the view of aging as obstacle to health and success, the evidence-based “success stories” presented by Professor Wahl were source of inspiration and lively discussion.

Dr. Verri’s clinical keynote concerned a most recent great advance in the German landscape of ageing medicine and geriatrics. Population ageing, as a major demographic transition associated to the doubling of people over 60 years of age and to the quadruplicating of people aged 80 years and over between 2000 and 2040, is associated with increasing prevalence of frailty (accelerated ageing), multimorbidity and functional loss. These three conditions strongly impact disease and recovery trajectories with advancing age, but are rarely captured in traditional healthcare systems. Common consequences for this underdiagnosis are irreversible disabilities and frequent rehospitalizations, associated to patients’ poorest quality of life and threatened socioeconomic stability. Dr. Verri, physician and researcher at the Agaplesion Bethesda Clinic and Institute of Geriatric Research at the University of Ulm, presented the upcoming AWMF S3 Guideline Comprehensive Geriatric Assessment (CGA) in the Hospital, first S3 guideline in Germany and second CGA guideline in Europe.