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Continuing Education in Anaesthesia, Critical Care & Pain Advance Access originally published online on September 8, 2009
Continuing Education in Anaesthesia, Critical Care & Pain 2009 9(5):144-147; doi:10.1093/bjaceaccp/mkp023
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© The Author [2009]. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the British Journal of Anaesthesia. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oxfordjournal.org

Delirium in intensive care

Jennifer King, MBChB FRCA
Specialist Registrar in Anaesthesia
Intensive Care Unit
Hull Royal Infirmary
Anlaby Road
Hull HU3 2JZ
UK

Andrew Gratrix, MBChB FCARCSI
Consultant in Intensive Care and Anaesthesia
Intensive Care Unit
Hull Royal Infirmary
Anlaby Road
Hull HU3 2JZ
UK
Tel: +44 1482 675031
Fax: +44 1482 675238
E-mail: andrew.gratrix@hey.nhs.uk (for correspondence)

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.


Key points

Delirium occurs in 60–80% of intensive care patients and is commonly overlooked.
The hypoactive form and mixed type are more common than the hyperactive type of delirium.
Prevention should consist of minimizing risk factors where possible.
Sedation scoring and sedation holds reduce the risk of delirium.
Assessment of delirium can be easily performed with the intensive care delirium screening checklist and confusion assessment method for the intensive care unit tools.

 


   Delirium in intensive care
 
Delirium in critically ill patients is a common occurrence (between 60% and 80% of ventilated patients),1 which has previously received little attention. Recent guidelines by the Intensive Care Society (ICS) and the Society of Critical Care Medicine (SCCM) recommend daily monitoring of sedation scores and delirium in all intensive care unit (ICU) patients. Recent studies have increased knowledge and interest in the treatment and prevention of delirium.

Delirium outside of the ICU has been studied in more detail, . . . [Full Text of this Article]


   Types of delirium
 

   Differential diagnosis
 

   Prevention
 
Sedation and analgesia medication

Sleep deprivation

Immobilization


   Assessment
 

   Treatment
 

   Outcomes
 

   Conclusion
 

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