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Updated: Jan 16, 2026

Assessment of Dependence in Activities of Daily Living Among Older Patients in an Acute Care Unit
Published on: September 30, 2020
Assessment of electrolyte abnormalities in older adults with COVID-19 and delirium
Milenko Petrovic1, Esther Park1, Gohar Azhar1
1University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock, AR, USA.
Objectives:
This retrospective cohort study investigated the impact of COVID-19 on altered sodium and potassium in older adults with delirium compared to a non-COVID pneumonia control group.
Methods:
Electronic Medical Records (EMRs) from a university hospital database were reviewed for electrolyte abnormalities and delirium. We identified 319 patients with COVID-19, of which 108 (33.8%) had an episode of delirium during COVID. In a second cohort of 306 older adults with non-COVID pneumonias, we identified 106 (34.6%) with delirium during pneumonia.
Results:
Electrolyte disturbances were more commonly present in non-COVID pneumonias versus in those with COVID (p < 0.001). Hypokalemia was more frequent in the non-COVID group (p < 0.006), while hypernatremia was more often identified in the COVID group (p < 0.0321). Delirium in COVID patients was more commonly associated with hypernatremia than with other electrolyte abnormalities.
Conclusions:
Because hypernatremia can be associated with seizures and cerebral hemorrhage, our findings highlight the need for careful monitoring and management of hypernatremia in hospitalized COVID patients, especially in light of its observed association with delirium.
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