Journal article
Delirium Superimposed on Dementia and Mild Cognitive Impairment
Postgraduate medicine, v 126(6)
01 Oct 2014
PMID: 25414941
Featured in Collection : UN Sustainable Development Goals @ Drexel
Abstract
Dementia is an illness that progressively affects cognition, emotion, and functional status. It can be complicated by delirium, an acute disturbance of consciousness and cognition that develops over a short course with fluctuating symptoms. Patients with dementia who experience delirium tend to have slower resolution of symptoms, more adverse events, and poorer outcomes. There are significant health care expenditures associated with delirium. Many health care providers fail to recognize and diagnose delirium. The confusion assessment method is a suggested tool for diagnosing delirium. Delirium is multifactorial, occurring in an individual who has a predisposing factor (dementia is the number 1 risk factor) and is exposed to further precipitating risk factors that are often preventable. The main focus of treatment and management of delirium should be on prevention, which can be achieved through assessing patients for predisposing and precipitating factors. If a patient does develop delirium, a reassessment of precipitating factors is the first step in treatment, and then nonpharmacologic or pharmacologic treatment can be considered. The use of antipsychotics or melatonin to treat delirium in dementia is considered off-label.
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Details
- Title
- Delirium Superimposed on Dementia and Mild Cognitive Impairment
- Creators
- Martha Roden - Drexel UniversityB. Brent Simmons - Drexel University
- Publication Details
- Postgraduate medicine, v 126(6)
- Publisher
- Taylor & Francis
- Number of pages
- 9
- Resource Type
- Journal article
- Language
- English
- Academic Unit
- Family (Community and Preventive) Medicine
- Web of Science ID
- WOS:000343792100011
- Scopus ID
- 2-s2.0-84922391314
- Other Identifier
- 991019183918304721
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InCites Highlights
Data related to this publication, from InCites Benchmarking & Analytics tool:
- Web of Science research areas
- Geriatrics & Gerontology