There is a factor to consider when an older patient undergoes surgery, has a life threatening event, like heart attack/stroke/ septicemia, etc, or is in an accident.

The elderly do not have a very responsive thyroid axis and may become hypo--as the body is stressed and needs extra hormone.

Some physicians know this and test rigorously for changes in thyroid function in the elderly under physical stress.

Hypo situations may resolve on their own. Or they may not.
It is possible this may be a factor in post surgical neuropathies, since hypo patients often develop neuropathies from low thyroid.

Also possible are inflammatory changes. There are studies from Britain and other European countries, showing that 1000mg of Vit C prevented RSD in a sizable number of patients (not elderly) who had wrist/ankle surgeries.
The Vit C seems to block the inflammatory attack on the nerves in some people, who will go on to develop the neuropathic RSD problem after the trauma.
There are several papers on PubMed on this subject:
example:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19840748

Anyone trying this, should consult with your doctor to see if you can tolerate 1000mg of Vit C daily. I suggest you use the Ester-C form as it is easier to tolerate.