Occurrence and predictors of delirium in critically ill older patients: a prospective cohort study

This study aims to analyze the occurrence of delirium in critically ill older patients and to identify predictors of delirium.

This prospective study included critically ill older patients admitted into level II units of Intensive Care Medicine Department of a University Hospital. Patients with Glasgow Coma Scale score ≤11, traumatic brain injury, terminal disease, history of psychosis, blindness/deafness, or inability to understanding/speaking Portuguese were excluded. The Confusion Assessment Method-Short Form (CAM-4) was used to assess the presence of delirium.

The final sample (n = 105) had a median age of 80 years, most being female (56.2%), widowed (49.5%), and with complete primary education (53%). Through CAM-4, 36.2% of the patients had delirium. The delirium group was more likely to have previous cognitive decline (48.6% vs 19.6%, P = .04) and severe dependency in instrumental activities of daily living (34.3% vs 14.8%, P = .032), comparing with patients without delirium. The final multiple logistic regression model explained that patients with previous cognitive decline presented a higher risk for delirium (odds ratio: 4.663, 95% confidence Interval: 1.055-20.599, P = .042).

These findings corroborate previous studies, showing that cognitive decline is an independent predictor for delirium in older patients. This study is an important contribution for the knowledge regarding the predictors of delirium. The recognition of these factors will help to identify patients who are at high risk for this syndrome and implement early screening and prevention strategies. However, further studies with larger samples, recruited from other clinical settings as well as analyzing other potential factors for delirium, will be needed.