Long-term care facility (LTCF) residents have unmet needs in end-of-life and symptom care.
This study examines the effects of an end-of-life care staff training intervention on LTCF residents’ pain, ...symptoms, and psychological well-being and their proxies’ satisfaction with care.
We report findings from a single-blind, cluster randomized controlled trial featuring 324 residents with end-of-life care needs in 20 LTCF wards in Helsinki. The training intervention included four 4-hour educational workshops on palliative care principles (advance care planning, adverse effects of hospitalizations, symptom management, communication, supporting proxies, challenging situations). Training was provided to all members of staff in small groups. Education was based on constructive learning methods and included participants’ own resident cases, role-plays, and small-group discussions. During a 12-month follow-up we assessed residents’ symptoms with the Edmonton Symptom Assessment Scale (ESAS), pain with the PAINAD instrument and psychological well-being using a PWB questionnaire. Proxies’ satisfaction with care was assessed using the SWC-EOLD.
The change in ESAS symptom scores from baseline to 6 months favored the intervention group compared with the control group. However, the finding was diluted at 12 months. PAINAD, PWB, and SWC-EOLD scores remained unaffected by the intervention. All follow-up analyses were adjusted for age, gender, do-not-resuscitate order, need for help, and clustering.
Our rigorous randomized controlled trial on palliative care training intervention demonstrated mild effects on residents’ symptoms and no robust effects on psychological well-being or on proxies’ satisfaction with care.
Abstract Objective The aim of this study was to assess the possible predisposing aetiologic and short-term precipitating factors for delirium in acutely ill hospital patients with a heavy burden of ...comorbidities and medications. Methods Eighty-seven consecutive patients with acute delirium admitted to a general medicine unit were thoroughly examined, and the predisposing and precipitating factors of their delirium were assessed. Results In this population, an average of 5.2 predisposing factors and 3.0 potential precipitating factors for delirium was revealed, meaning an average of over eight possible aetiological causes for each patient. The most common precipitating factors were infections ( n =72), metabolic abnormalities ( n =52), adverse drug effects ( n =41), and cardiovascular events ( n =38). In addition, a number of very rare conditions were diagnosed after thorough assessments. Conclusion Geriatric patients with acute delirium typically present with several concomitant predisposing factors for delirium exposing them to high vulnerability for the syndrome. In most patients, a number of possible etiological causes for delirium can be identified after a careful assessment, but their true pathogenetic pathway to the syndrome is unclear.
The association of apathy with Alzheimer disease and other dementias and caregiver burden has been examined in a number of studies; however, less is known about its relationship with delirium and ...mortality. We aimed to investigate the prevalence, relationship with delirium and dementia, and prognostic value of apathy in an elderly and frail inpatient population.
The cohort included 425 patients in acute geriatric wards and in 7 nursing homes in Helsinki (1999-2000). Demographic factors, physical functioning, diagnoses, and drugs were assessed with special reference for dementia, delirium, and apathy. Mortality was registered from central registers.
Of the patients, 98 (23.1%) suffered from apathy, and it was more frequent among men (32% versus 21% women, P = .037 ). There was no difference in mean age, number of comorbidities, or in the mean number of medications between those with and without apathy; however, those with apathy had lower mean MMSE points (9.2 versus 14.0 without apathy, P < .001), more often severe dementia according to Clinical Dementia Rating, and higher dependence in activities of daily living (P = .001). Furthermore, patients with apathy were more often suffering from delirium (37.8% versus 21.1%, P ≤ .001). Mortality during the 1-year follow-up was 34.7% (n = 34) and 22.0% (n = 72) among individuals with and without apathy, respectively (P = .011). In the Cox proportional hazard model with age, gender, activities of daily living, and delirium as covariates, apathy significantly predicted mortality (HR 1.89, 95% CI 1.24 to 2.89; P = .003).
Apathy is a common and serious neuropsychiatric symptom associated with cognitive decline, delirium, and disability, and it also independently predicts mortality.
Our aim was to investigate the long-term prognosis of delirium in the frailest elderly, and to clarify whether delirium is just a marker of the underlying severe disease. We used logistic regression ...analysis to determine the independent prognostic significance of delirium. A representative sample of 425 patients (≥70 years) in acute geriatric wards and nursing homes were assessed at baseline and followed up for 2 years. DSM-IV was used for classification. The prevalence of delirium at baseline was 24.9% (106/425). The prognosis of delirium was poor: mortality at 1 year was 34.9 vs. 21.6% in nondelirious subjects (p = 0.006), and at 2 years 58.5 vs. 42.6% (p = 0.005). Among home-dwelling people at baseline, 54.4% of the delirious vs. 27.9% of others were permanently institutionalized within 2 years (p < 0.001). In logistic regression analysis, delirium was an independent predictor for mortality at 1 year (OR 1.86, 95% CI 1.1–3.1), at 2 years (OR 1.76, 95% CI 1.1–2.8), and for permanent institutionalization (OR 2.45, 95% CI 1.2–4.9). Delirious patients with prior dementia tended to have a better prognosis than those without.
Objectives To study the frequency of overlapping of delirium with neuropsychiatric symptoms (NPS) among patients with dementia, and to investigate the prognostic value of delirium, multiple NPS ...without delirium, or neither during a 2-year follow-up. Methods We assessed 425 consecutive patients in acute geriatric wards and in seven nursing homes in Helsinki. Those 255 suffering from dementia were examined for NPS of dementia described in the Neuropsychiatric Inventory (delusions, hallucinations, agitation/aggression, depression/low mood, anxiety, euphoria/elation, apathy, disinhibition, irritability/mood changes, and aberrant motor behavior) and for delirium criteria according to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition (DSM-IV). Patients were categorized into three groups: delirium with or without multiple NPS (delirium group), multiple NPS without delirium (multiple NPS group), or having neither delirium nor multiple NPS (zero or only one NPS group). Results A total of 66 patients suffered from delirium according to the DSM-IV, 127 had multiple NPS without delirium, and 62 had neither multiple NPS nor delirium. In the delirium group 61 individuals (92.4%) were deceased or residing in permanent institutional care at the end of the 2-year follow up period, compared to 100 individuals (78.7%) in the multiple NPS group and 48 (77.4%) in the zero or one NPS group (Pearson X2 = 6.64, df 2, p = 0.036). In logistic regression analysis adjusted for age, sex, and comorbidities, delirium was an independent predictor of this composite outcome (OR: 4.3, 95% CI: 1.4–13.6). Conclusions Patient groups with symptoms of delirium and multiple NPS are highly overlapping. The presence of delirium indicates poor prognosis.
Background. Delirium is a common syndrome with poor prognosis affecting elderly inpatients. Treatment is mainly based on common sense with wide variations in practice. We investigated whether ...intensified, multicomponent geriatric treatment could improve the prognosis of delirious patients. Methods. We performed a randomized, controlled trial of 174 patients with delirium in six general medicine units from an acute hospital in Helsinki, Finland. The intervention group received individually tailored geriatric treatment. The primary endpoint was the sum of those deceased individuals and the patients permanently institutionalized. Secondary endpoints included the number of days in hospitals and other institutions, delirium intensity, and cognition. Results. The mean age of patients was 83 years, and 31% had previous dementia. The intervention group (N = 87) received significantly more acetylcholinesterase inhibitors (58.6% vs 9.2%), atypical antipsychotics (69.8% vs 30.2%), specialist consultations (49.4% vs 28.7%), hip protectors (88.5% vs 3.4%), physiotherapy (87.4% vs 47.1%), and fewer conventional neuroleptics (8.0% vs 23.0%) than did the control group (N = 87). During the 1-year follow-up, 60.9% of the intervention group and 64.4% of controls were either deceased or permanently institutionalized (p =.638). The intervention group spent a mean of 126 days in institutions, and the control group 140 days (p =.688). Delirium was, however, alleviated more rapidly during hospitalization, and cognition improved significantly at 6 months in the intervention group. Conclusions. Faster alleviation of delirium and improved cognition justify good, comprehensive geriatric care for these patients although treatment produced no significant improvements in hard endpoints of prognosis.
Background Antipsychotics are widely used to manage behavioral disorders in patients with dementia. Recently, serious concerns have been raised about the stroke and mortality risk of atypical ...antipsychotics when administered to patients with dementia. Aim The aim of this study was to examine the impact of atypical and conventional antipsychotics on mortality and hospital admissions among Finnish elderly institutionalized patients with dementia in a two-year follow up and to compare their prognosis with that of nonusers. Patients and Methods The authors examined 254 very frail patients with dementia, mean age 86 years, from seven Finnish nursing homes and two hospitals in1999–2000. Medical records provided information on the use of daily antipsychotic medication; central registers confirmed mortality for up to two years. Results Nearly one-half (48.4%) of the patients used antipsychotic medication: 37.4% received conventional neuroleptics (N = 95) and 11.0% received atypical antipsychotics (N = 28). The mean number of hospital admissions was higher among the nonusers than among the users of conventional or atypical antipsychotics. Of the users of atypical antipsychotics (risperidone, olanzapine), 32.1% died within 2 years. The respective figures for users of conventional neuroleptics were 45.3%, and for the nonusers, 49.6%. In the Cox proportional hazard model, a high number of medications and the use of physical restraint predicted higher mortality at two years. The use of atypical antipsychotics showed lower risk of mortality, if any. The respective test for conventional antipsychotics was nonsignificant. Conclusion Among these frail and very old patients with dementia, neither the use of atypical antipsychotics nor the use of conventional neuroleptics increased mortality or hospital admissions. The use of restraints, however, doubled the risk of mortality.
Abstract Objective The development of ICD-11 provides an opportunity to update the description of delirium according to emerging data that have added to our understanding of this complex ...neuropsychiatric syndrome. Method Synthetic article based on published work considered by the authors to be relevant to the definition of delirium. Results The current DSM-IV definition of delirium is preferred to the ICD-10 because of its greater inclusivity. Evidence does not support major changes in the principal components of present definitions but a number of key issues for the updated definition were identified. These include better account of non-cognitive features, more guidance for rating contextual diagnostic items, clearer definition regarding the interface with dementia, and accounting for illness severity, clinical subtypes and course. Conclusion Development of the ICD definition of delirium can allow for more targeted research and clinical effort.
To (1) explore clinical and demographic characteristics of users and nonusers of PPIs in 3 cohorts of institutionalized older people in Finland, and (2) compare the risk of death associated with use ...of PPIs in each setting.
Cross-sectional assessment of 3 institutionalized cohorts with 1-year follow-up of all-cause mortality.
A total of 1389 residents of 69 assisted living facilities (first cohort), 1004 residents of long term care hospitals (second cohort), and 425 residents in acute geriatric wards or in nursing homes (third cohort).
Demographic, drug use, and diagnostic data were collected during structured assessments conducted by trained nurses or geriatricians. Cox proportional hazards models were used to compute unadjusted and adjusted hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for the association between use of PPIs and mortality.
In the assisted living facility, the mortality was 20.2% (n = 74) and 20.4% (n = 208) among users and nonusers of PPIs, respectively (P = 0.94). PPIs were not associated with mortality in unadjusted or adjusted analyses. In the long term care hospitals, use of PPIs was associated with increased mortality (HR, 1.36; 95% CI 1.04-1.77) when adjusted for age, sex, comorbidity, use of SSRIs, and malnutrition. In the acute geriatric wards and nursing homes, use of PPIs was associated with increased mortality (HR, 1.90; 95% CI 1.23-2.94) when adjusted for age, sex, comorbidity, delirium, and use of aspirin and SSRIs.
PPIs were not associated with mortality among residents in assisted living facilities, but were associated with increased mortality in settings where residents experienced higher levels of disability and possible susceptibility to adverse drug events.
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