Prevalence and features of delirium in older patients admitted to rehabilitation facilities: a multicenter study

BACKGROUND

Delirium is thought to be common across various settings of care; however, still little research has been conducted in rehabilitation.

AIM

We investigated the prevalence of delirium, its features and motor subtypes in older patients admitted to rehabilitation facilities during the three editions of the "Delirium Day project".

METHODS

We conducted a cross-sectional study in which 1237 older patients (age ≥ 65 years old) admitted to 50 Italian rehabilitation wards during the three editions of the "Delirium Day project" (2015 to 2017) were included. Delirium was evaluated through the 4AT and its motor subtype with the Delirium Motor Subtype Scale.

RESULTS

Delirium was detected in 226 patients (18%), and the most recurrent motor subtype was mixed (37%), followed by hypoactive (26%), hyperactive (21%) and non-motor one (16%). In a multivariate Poisson regression model with robust variance, factors associated with delirium were: disability in basic (PR 1.48, 95%CI: 1.17-1.9, p value 0.001) and instrumental activities of daily living (PR 1.58, 95%CI: 1.08-2.32, p value 0.018), dementia (PR 2.10, 95%CI: 1.62-2.73, p value < 0.0001), typical antipsychotics (PR 1.47, 95%CI: 1.10-1.95, p value 0.008), antidepressants other than selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (PR 1.3, 95%CI: 1.02-1.66, p value 0.035), and physical restraints (PR 2.37, 95%CI: 1.68-3.36, p value < 0.0001).

CONCLUSION

This multicenter study reports that 2 out 10 patients admitted to rehabilitations had delirium on the index day. Mixed delirium was the most prevalent subtype. Delirium was associated with unmodifiable (dementia, disability) and modifiable (physical restraints, medications) factors. Identification of these factors should prompt specific interventions aimed to prevent or mitigate delirium.

The association between low skeletal muscle mass and delirium: results from the nationwide multi-centre Italian Delirium Day 2017

Introduction

Delirium and sarcopenia are common, although underdiagnosed, geriatric syndromes. Several pathological mechanisms can link delirium and low skeletal muscle mass, but few studies have investigated their association. We aimed to investigate (1) the association between delirium and low skeletal muscle mass and (2) the possible role of calf circumference mass in finding cases with delirium.

Methods

The analyses were conducted employing the cross-sectional “Delirium Day” initiative, on patient 65 years and older admitted to acute hospital medical wards, emergency departments, rehabilitation wards, nursing homes and hospices in Italy in 2017. Delirium was diagnosed as a 4 + score at the 4-AT scale. Low skeletal muscle mass was operationally defined as calf circumference ≤ 34 cm in males and ≤ 33 cm in females. Logistic regression models were used to investigate the association between low skeletal muscle mass and delirium. The discriminative ability of calf circumference was evaluated using non-parametric ROC analyses.

Results

A sample of 1675 patients was analyzed. In total, 73.6% of participants had low skeletal muscle mass and 24.1% exhibited delirium. Low skeletal muscle mass and delirium showed an independent association (OR: 1.50; 95% CI 1.09–2.08). In the subsample of patients without a diagnosis of dementia, the inclusion of calf circumference in a model based on age and sex significantly improved its discriminative accuracy [area under the curve (AUC) 0.69 vs 0.57, p < 0.001].

Discussion and conclusion

Low muscle mass is independently associated with delirium. In patients without a previous diagnosis of dementia, calf circumference may help to better identify those who develop delirium.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s40520-021-01950-8.

Melatonin reduces the need for sedation in ICU patients: a randomized controlled trial

BACKGROUND

Critically ill patients suffer from physiological sleep deprivation and have reduced blood melatonin levels. This study was designed to determine whether nocturnal melatonin supplementation would reduce the need for sedation in patients with critical illness.

METHODS

A single-center, double-blind randomized placebo-controlled trial was carried out from July 2007 to December 2009, in a mixed medical-surgical Intensive Care Unit of a University hospital, without any form of external funding. Of 1158 patients admitted to ICU and treated with conscious enteral sedation, 82 critically-ill with mechanical ventilation >48 hours and Simplified Acute Physiology Score II>32 points were randomized 1:1 to receive, at eight p.m. and midnight, melatonin (3+3mg) or placebo, from the third ICU day until ICU discharge. Primary outcome was total amount of enteral hydroxyzine administered.

RESULTS

Melatonin treated patients received lower amount of enteral hydroxyzine. Other neurological indicators (amount of some neuroactive drugs, pain, agitation, anxiety, sleep observed by nurses, need for restraints, need for extra sedation, nurse evaluation of sedation adequacy) seemed improved, with reduced cost for neuroactive drugs. Post-traumatic stress disorder prevalence did not differ between groups, nor did ICU or hospital mortality. Study limitations include the differences between groups before intervention, the small sample size, and the single-center observation.

CONCLUSION

Long-term enteral melatonin supplementation may result in a decreased need for sedation, with improved neurological indicators and cost reduction. Further multicenter evaluations are required to confirm these results with different sedation protocols.

Incidence of postoperative urinary retention (POUR) after joint arthroplasty and management using ultrasound-guided bladder catheterization

BACKGROUND

Postoperative urinary retention (POUR) following lower limb arthroplasty is a common complication. The aim of this observational study was to establish the incidence of POUR and assess the usefulness of an ultrasonographic nurse-driven protocol, thereby avoiding elective bladder catheterization.

METHODS

Two-hundred and eighty six consecutive patients undergoing elective hip and knee arthroplasty were retrospectively studied. None of the patients received elective bladder catheterization. Data on risk factors for POUR, urinary tract infections, length of hospital stay and analgesia were collected. Student's t, Wilcoxon rank-sum, ANOVA and Kruskall-Wallis tests were performed for comparison among two or more groups. Categorical variables were studied using Pearson's χ2 test. Results were considered significant when the P value <0.05.

RESULTS

Of the 286 patients studied, 49 (17%) required indwelling catheter for 24-48 h. Patients who had POUR had more risk factors (P<0.05) and had longer hospital stays (P<0.05). When comparing analgesia, continuous peripheral nerve block (CPNB) had the least impact on POUR (15.8%), while epidural analgesia had the greatest impact (48.1%).

CONCLUSION

Bladder scanners timely detect POUR following lower joint arthroplasty, making elective bladder catheterization unnecessary.

Understanding international differences in terminology for delirium and other types of acute brain dysfunction in critically ill patients

BACKGROUND

Delirium (acute brain dysfunction) is a potentially life threatening disturbance in brain function that frequently occurs in critically ill patients. While this area of brain dysfunction in critical care is rapidly advancing, striking limitations in use of terminology related to delirium internationally are hindering cross-talk and collaborative research. In the English literature, synonyms of delirium such as the Intensive Care Unit syndrome, acute brain dysfunction, acute brain failure, psychosis, confusion, and encephalopathy are widely used. This often leads to scientific "confusion" regarding published data and methodology within studies, which is further exacerbated by organizational, cultural and language barriers.

OBJECTIVE

We undertook this multinational effort to identify conflicts in terminology and phenomenology of delirium to facilitate communication across medical disciplines and languages.

METHODS

The evaluation of the terminology used for acute brain dysfunction was determined conducting communications with 24 authors from academic communities throughout countries/regions that speak the 13 variants of the Romanic languages included into this manuscript.

RESULTS

In the 13 languages utilizing Romanic characters, included in this report, we identified the following terms used to define major types of acute brain dysfunction: coma, delirium, delirio, delirium tremens, délire, confusion mentale, delir, delier, Durchgangs-Syndrom, acute verwardheid, intensiv-psykose, IVA-psykos, IVA-syndrom, akutt konfusion/forvirring. Interestingly two terms are very consistent: 100 % of the selected languages use the term coma or koma to describe patients unresponsive to verbal and/or physical stimuli, and 100% use delirium tremens to define delirium due to alcohol withdrawal. Conversely, only 54% use the term delirium to indicate the disorder as defined by the DSM-IV as an acute change in mental status, inattention, disorganized thinking and altered level of consciousness.

CONCLUSIONS

Attempts towards standardization in terminology, or at least awareness of differences across languages and specialties, will help cross-talk among clinicians and researchers.

Sleep and delirium in the intensive care unit

Intensive Care Unit (ICU) patients almost uniformly suffer from sleep disruption. Even though the role of sleep disturbances is not still adequately understood, they may be related to metabolic, immune, neurological and respiratory dysfunction and could worsen the quality of life after discharge. A harsh ICU environment, underlying disease, mechanical ventilation, pain and drugs are the main reasons that underlie sleep disruption in the critically ill. Polysomnography is the gold standard in evaluating sleep, but it is not feasible in clinical practice; therefore, other objective (bispectral index score [BIS] and actigraphy) and subjective (nurse and patient assessment) methods have been proposed, but their adequacy in ICU patients is not clear. Frequent evaluation of neurological status with validated tools is necessary to avoid excessive or prolonged sedation in order to better titrate patient-focused therapy. Hypnotic agents like benzodiazepines can increase total sleep time, but they alter the physiological progression of sleep phases, and decrease the time spent in the most restorative phases compared to the phases normally mediated by melatonin; melatonin production is decreased in critically ill patients, and as such, exogenous melatonin supplementation may improve sleep quality. Sleep disruption and the development of delirium are frequently related, both because of sleep scarcity and inappropriate dosing with sedatives. Delirium is strongly related to increased ICU morbidity and mortality, thus the resolution of sleep disruption could significantly contribute to improved ICU outcomes. An early evaluation of delirium is strongly recommended because of the potential to resolve the underlying causes or to begin an appropriate therapy. Further studies are needed on the effects of strategies to promote sleep and on the evaluation of better sleep in clinical outcomes, particularly on the development of delirium.

Proposal of a flexible structural-organizing model for the Intensive Care Units

BACKGROUND

The aim of this study was to verify the capability of the Italian Group for the Evaluation of Intervention in Intensive Care Medicine (Gruppo Italiano Valutazione Interventi in Terapia Intensiva, GiViTI) Intensive Care Units (ICUs) in providing high level care (HLC) and to develop a flexible organiziational model, allowing for different levels of care in each ICU.

METHODS

Once the number of active beds, personnel and technology of each ICU were determined, we computed whether the available bed number and all available resources could provide HLC according to international standards. For ICUs lacking staff or equipment for safe HLC in all declared beds, we calculated the best combination between HLC and observation/monitoring beds with less need for nurses and technology (low level of care, LLC) in order to optimise the utilization of each bed. We also investigated the work organisation of physicians and nurses in these units.

RESULTS

There are 2 070 available beds in the 293 GiViTI ICUs. To provide HLC according to international criteria, the beds would decrease to 80.9%, because 144 ICUs do not have nurses or equipment to provide HLC in each bed. In order to maximize the suitable use of available resources, these ICUs would have to reduce the HLC bed number using the regained nurse workload for LLC. Because of this, the total number of HLC beds would further decrease to 65.9% of all declared beds. During Sundays and holidays, the bed/doctor and the bed/nurse ratios increase in most ICUs.

CONCLUSION

To maximize the staff and equipment resources available, the bed numbers of a general ICU providing HLC must vary, even daily, according to the level of care provided. This level is not always high for all patients present. Applying this organizing model to each ICU, we could have enough flexibility to face the different demands for assistance if the ICU is built as a large open space to achieve the best clinical model and use of resources.

Thoracic epidural analgesia facilitates the restoration of bowel function and dietary intake in patients undergoing laparoscopic colon resection using a traditional, nonaccelerated, perioperative care program

BACKGROUND

This randomized trial compared thoracic epidural analgesia with patient-controlled analgesia (PCA) using morphine for laparoscopic colectomy in a traditional, nonaccelerated, perioperative care program.

METHODS

In the study, 50 patients scheduled for elective laparoscopic colon resection were randomized to either PCA morphine (n = 25) or thoracic epidural analgesia with bupivacaine and fentanyl (n = 25). Both groups received general anesthesia and multimodal pain relief, which included naproxen and acetaminophen for as long as 4 postoperative days. Time until passage of gas and bowel movements, dietary intake, postoperative quality of analgesia, readiness for discharge, and length of hospital stay were recorded.

RESULTS

Recovery of postoperative ileus occurred sooner in the epidural group (p < 0.005) by an average 1 to 2 days, and resumption of full diet was achieved earlier (p < 0.05). Intensity of pain during the first 2 postoperative days was significantly lower at rest, with coughing, and with walking in the epidural group (p < 0.005). Readiness for discharge and hospital length of stay (5 days) were otherwise similar in the two groups.

CONCLUSIONS

When a traditional perioperative care program is used for laparoscopic colectomy, thoracic epidural analgesia is superior to PCA in accelerating the return of bowel function and dietary intake, while providing better pain relief.

Metabolic treatment of critically ill patients: energy expenditure and energy supply

Nutrition in critically ill patients should be considered as therapy: assessing the energy expenditure and the termogenic effect of food, and knowing the differences among composition and amount of given substrates, it is possible restore, maintain, or at least limit the derangement of energy equilibrium. Energy metabolism comprehends assumption, storage and oxidation of nutrients: all these factors could be discriminant in critical clinical conditions, particularly cardiac and respiratory failure. Then, this review would lead the decision making process beginning from biochemistry and bioenergetics, until the metabolic strategy practically usable at the bedside of patients during the whole critical phase of their pathology.

Metabolic and endocrine effects of sedative agents

Metabolically critical illness can be divided in two phases, acute and prolonged. Whereas the acute or hypermetabolic phase is characterized by elevated circulating concentration of catabolic hormones and substrate utilization to provide energy to vital organs, the prolonged or catabolic phase of critical illness is marked by reduced endocrine stimulation and severe loss of body cell mass. The most common analgesic and sedative agents used in the intensive care unit, if used in small or moderate doses, do not interfere significantly with the metabolic milieu; however, prolonged infusions, and in high doses, without adequate monitoring of level of sedation and quality of analgesia, can precipitate morbid events. Further research is needed in the metabolic aspects of analgesia and sedation in the intensive care unit, particularly if a multimodal pharmacologic strategy is used whereby multiple interventions aim at minimizing the risk of overdosing and contributing to attenuation of the stress response associated with critical illness.

Metabolic treatment of critically ill patients: energy balance and substrate disposal

Oxidation of substrates is the main biochemical process used by the human body to produce energy. Different substrates (carbohydrates, lipids, and proteins) have different effects on oxygen consumption and carbon dioxide production: during the critical phase of pathologies it could be relevant pay attention to the use of various nutrients, that have some altered effect respect to the normal subjects metabolism, and during the length of metabolic treatment, too. Generally, nutrition lead to replenish body stores, while endogenous substrates are used to be oxidized. Critically ill patients show a preference for prompt energy availability (i.e. glucose) to avoid endogenous protein catabolism; lipids are shown to have a more pronounced storage effect. Adequate amount of energy intake in carbohydrates determine an increase of RQ, that means a shift from a more lipid-based to a more glucose-based oxidation. Composition of dietary intake can be usefully different for each pathology, and also for different periods of the same pathology, because critically ill patients have a variety of metabolic needs during their stay in ICU.

Performance determinants and flexible ICU organisation

We faced some of the most important aspects of the problem of the appropriateness of ICU resources use, that are the relationship between volume of activity and mortality, the analysis of cost-effectiveness in intensive care medicine, and the monitoring of the human resource use in ICU. For this aim three different surveys were utilized: one at European level, the second at country level and, third, a regional survey. After developing a new measure of volume called ''high-risk volume'', we explored the relationship between outcome and volume, founding that such association was very strong (from 3 to 1719% decrease in ICU/hospital mortality every five extra high-risk patients treated per bed per year), and that an occupancy rate larger than 80% was associated with higher mortality. Therefore, patients in all levels of risk are better treated in high-risk volume ICUs with a reasonable occupancy rate. Analysing cost-effectiveness in intensive care medicine using a national case-mix categorized in different diagnostic groups, we identified brain haemorrhage, ALI/ARDS and surgical unscheduled patients as users a high volume of monetary resources less efficiently, while the scheduled abdominal surgery patients admitted to receive intensive care and patients on the ICU for minor organ support made the best use of the fewer resources spent. Finally, we designed a new approach to measure the rate and appropriateness of nursing resource use in ICU on a daily basis. Testing this approach on a group of general non-specialist ICUs, we found that the method was powerful enough to adequately distinguish between ''over'' and ''under-utilization'' and to identify all the theoretical scenarios of nurse/resource utilization.

Evaluating daily nursing use and needs in the intensive care unit: a method to assess the rate and appropriateness of ICU resource use

BACKGROUND

We designed a tool to measure the rate and appropriateness of intensive care unit (ICU) nursing coverage as a proxy for the use of resources.

METHODS

We tested the tool in 32 Italian ICUs during a cross-sectional study (4 days/week, October 2001 and April 2002). The level of care was classified as high or low. The appropriate patient-to-nurse ratio for both levels (2/1 and 3/1 in this ICU mix) was defined. The provided and theoretical nurse assistance was computed, the difference between the two quantifying the ICU use of personnel: a positive difference means over-utilization, a negative one under-utilization. We calculated the maximum number of high-level and low-level care days available for ICU and the relative utilization rates. These two rates quantify the appropriateness of resource use in relation to the planned use.

RESULTS

Analysing 5783 treatment-days, the tool identified units using almost all available resources (five), overcrowded (14: too small units) or empty (16: too big). Units were overcrowded on account of the high-level of care required (five: utilization rate >100%) or reallocated too much of their residual high-care nursing capacity to low-level care (six). In empty units both utilization rates were lower than expected.

CONCLUSIONS

The method quantifies the rate and appropriateness of resource usage and suggests the best management in units with fixed human resources or a fixed number of beds.