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Delirium (formerly acute confusional state, an ambiguous term that is now discouraged) [1] is a specific state of acute confusion attributable to the direct physiological consequence of a medical condition, effects of a psychoactive substance, or multiple causes, which usually develops over the course of hours to days.
Elderly people often experience multiple comorbidities that may contribute to the phenomenon of sundowning syndrome through neurodegeneration. Neurological disorders: Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease , Huntington's disease , Lewy body dementia , fronto-temporal dementia, subcortical dementia.
Delirium is a condition that has hyperactive and hypoactive stages. In the hypoactive stages, elderly patients can just seem like they are sleeping or irritable. [15] Hospital staff often overlook these symptoms which leads to decreased cognitive ability and PTSD from the hospital environment. [16] The issue here is that the elderly often lack ...
Some elderly people may find it hard to describe their symptoms in words, especially if the disease is causing confusion, or if they have cognitive impairment. Delirium in the elderly may be caused by a minor problem such as constipation or by something as serious and life-threatening as a heart attack. Many of these problems are treatable, if ...
The Confusion Assessment Method (CAM) is a diagnostic tool developed to allow physicians and nurses to identify delirium in the healthcare setting. [1] It was designed to be brief (less than 5 minutes to perform) and based on criteria from the third edition-revision of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-III-R).
The overarching principle of delirium treatment is finding and treating the underlying cause. If the patient is truly experiencing delirium, their symptoms should begin improving/resolving with proper treatment of their illness, intoxication, etc. [ 9 ] Medication such as antipsychotics or benzodiazepines can help reduce the symptoms for some ...
Dr. A. Thomas McLellan, the co-founder of the Treatment Research Institute, echoed that point. “Here’s the problem,” he said. Treatment methods were determined “before anybody really understood the science of addiction. We started off with the wrong model.” For families, the result can be frustrating and an expensive failure.
Delirium is characterized by fluctuating disturbed perception and consciousness in the ill individual. [59] It has hypoactive and hyperactive or mixed forms. People with hyperactive delirium present similarly to those with excited catatonia and have symptoms of restlessness, agitation, and aggression.