Deng C, et al. - Researchers utilized routinely gathered electronic data from Auckland District Health Board (DHB) and New Zealand Ministry of Health databases, to determine the population-adjusted incidence of acute and elective general and orthopaedic surgery in older patients at a tertiary hospital in New Zealand, via this retrospective analysis. They collected population estimates and numbers of general surgical and orthopaedic procedures for a time frame between 2004 to 2016. During this period, an annual rise by 5.35% was noted in the incidence of elective surgery. A lower rate of increase was reported in the Māori population (2.14%) vs other ethnic groups. From 2004 to 2016, a reduction in the incidence of acute surgery was reported in those aged 70 years and above. The highest rate of acute surgery was reported in the European and other ethnic group, and these groups had higher rates of elective surgery compared with Pacific and Asian peoples. Findings revealed that the number of elective general surgical and orthopaedic procedures done on older patients in Auckland DHB is increasing and this rise is beyond what is anticipated for population growth alone. Ethnic variations were highlighted and require further attention as these may indicate differences in access to surgery.