<s>[INST] I just got a call that my 84 year old Mother is in the hospital and they discoered an subdural hematoma. She lives out of state with my sister and my sister said the doctor didn t seem overly concerned other than the fact of her getting surgery at her age . My question is how bad is this, They said it was a small one but they have to relieve the pressure . She has been losig her balance a lot over the last few months and falling. Other than that her health is very good. She had surgery a few month ago to clear blockage in her carotid artery. She is a former smoker but relatively good health. [/INST] Well the surgical procedure is a fairly easy one and since they say it's a small bleed chances are it has not caused severe permanent damage to the brain. Of course they mention her age as the main issue because old people carry a higher complication risk for any type of surgery especially with general anesthesia, respiratory complications, infections, thrombosis etc. Hopefully that won't be her case, but doctors have to inform you of any possible scenario. </s>