With the acceleration of aging, there are more and more elderly patients receiving various types of surgical treatment year after year. Perioperative nosocomial infection has become one of the main problems affecting the prognosis and rehabilitation of elderly patients. It is of great importance to study the incidence and risk factors of postoperative infectious complications (PICs) for prevention of the diseases. Although, in recent years, great achievements have been made in the researches in many countries, there are still many challenges in providing practical clinical guidance and developing specific therapeutic measures. In this article, we reviewed and summarized the current status and progresses of PICs for the elderly population.