Altered Mental Status In Older Patients In The Emergency Department

Altered Mental Status In Older Patients In The Emergency Department

Han J H; Wilber S T

Clinics in Geriatric Medicine

2013

2013-02

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.

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

Journal Article or Conference Abstract Publication

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