Altered Mental Status In Older Patients In The Emergency Department
agitation-sedation scale; cognitive impairment; Coma; confusion assessment method; critically-ill; Delirium; diagnosis; elderly; Emergency department; epidemiology; Geriatrics & Gerontology; glasgow coma scale; hospitalized-patients; intensive-care unit; length-of-stay; management; multicomponent geriatric intervention; patients; risk-factors; Stupor
Altered mental status is a common chief compliant among older patients in the emergency department (ED). Acute changes in mental status are more concerning and are usually secondary to delirium, stupor, and coma. Although stupor and coma are easily identifiable, the clinical presentation of delirium can be subtle and is often missed without actively screening for it. For patients with acute changes in mental status the ED evaluation should focus on searching for the underlying etiology. Infection is one of the most common precipitants of delirium, but multiple causes may exist concurrently.
Han J H; Wilber S T
Clinics in Geriatric Medicine
2013
2013-02
Journal Article or Conference Abstract Publication
<a href="http://doi.org/10.1016/j.cger.2012.09.005" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">10.1016/j.cger.2012.09.005</a>
Bacterial Pneumonia in Older Adults.
*Community-acquired; *Decision Making; *Elderly; *Etiology; *Pneumonia; *Risk factors; *Treatment; Aged; Bacterial – Epidemiology; Bacterial/*epidemiology; Community-Acquired Infections – Epidemiology; Community-Acquired Infections/*epidemiology; Decision Making; Global Health; Humans; Incidence; Pneumonia; Risk Factors; World Health
Community-acquired pneumonia is common in the elderly person; its presentation in this population is often confounded by multiple comorbid illnesses, including those that result in confusion. Although severity-of-illness scoring systems might aid decision-making, clinical judgment following a careful assessment is key in deciding on the site of care and appropriate therapy.
Marrie Thomas J; File Thomas M Jr
Clinics in geriatric medicine
2016
2016-08
Article information provided for research and reference use only. All rights are retained by the journal listed under publisher and/or the creator(s).
<a href="http://doi.org/10.1016/j.cger.2016.02.012" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">10.1016/j.cger.2016.02.012</a>