People with dementia who are admitted to hospital have worse outcomes than those without dementia. Identifying interventions that could reduce the risk of hospitalisation in people with dementia has ...the potential to positively impact on lives of people with dementia. This review aimed to investigate whether there are non-pharmacological interventions that successfully reduce hospitalisation risk, length of stay and mortality in people with dementia.
7 electronic databases and trial registries were searched from inception to October 2018. We included randomised controlled trials that evaluated non-pharmacological interventions in out of hospital settings and targeted people with any type of dementia. All stages of the review process were performed by two reviewers. Risk of bias was assessed using the Cochrane Risk of Bias tool. We grouped studies based on intervention: care management, counselling/self-help, enhanced GP services or memory clinics, and physiotherapy or occupational therapy. Data were pooled within intervention categories using random effects meta-analysis.
There was no evidence that any of the intervention categories were associated with reduced hospital admission or mortality. There was very weak evidence to suggest that care management interventions (mean difference, MD, -0.16, 95% CI -0.32, 0.01), physiotherapy/occupational therapy (MD -0.16, 95% CI -0.36, 0.03) and enhanced GP/memory clinics (MD -0.14, 95% CI -0.31, 0.03) were associated with small reductions in hospital stay. There was no evidence for an effect of counselling/self-help interventions on length of hospital stay.
Current evidence from randomised trials suggests no clear benefit or harm associated with any of interventions on risks of hospitalisation, duration of hospitalisation or death. Further research with the primary aim to reduce hospitalisation in people with dementia is required.
Summary Background Death within 90 days after total hip replacement is rare but might be avoidable dependent on patient and treatment factors. We assessed whether a secular decrease in death caused ...by hip replacement has occurred in England and Wales and whether modifiable perioperative factors exist that could reduce deaths. Methods We took data about hip replacements done in England and Wales between April, 2003, and December, 2011, from the National Joint Registry for England and Wales. Patient identifiers were used to link these data to the national mortality database and the Hospital Episode Statistics database to obtain details of death, sociodemographics, and comorbidity. We assessed mortality within 90 days of operation by Kaplan-Meier analysis and assessed the role of patient and treatment factors by Cox proportional hazards model. Findings 409 096 primary hip replacements were done to treat osteoarthritis. 1743 patients died within 90 days of surgery during 8 years, with a substantial secular decrease in mortality, from 0·56% in 2003 to 0·29% in 2011, even after adjustment for age, sex, and comorbidity. Several modifiable clinical factors were associated with decreased mortality according to an adjusted model: posterior surgical approach (hazard ratio HR 0·82, 95% CI 0·73–0·92; p=0·001), mechanical thromboprophylaxis (0·85, 0·74–0·99; p=0·036), chemical thromboprophylaxis with heparin with or without aspirin (0·79, 0·66–0·93; p=0·005), and spinal versus general anaesthetic (0·85, 0·74–0·97; p=0·019). Type of prosthesis was unrelated to mortality. Being overweight was associated with lower mortality (0·76, 0·62–0·92; p=0·006). Interpretation Postoperative mortality after hip joint replacement has fallen substantially. Widespread adoption of four simple clinical management strategies (posterior surgical approach, mechanical and chemical prophylaxis, and spinal anaesthesia) could, if causally related, reduce mortality further. Funding National Joint Registry for England and Wales.
Summary Background Understanding the risk factors for early death after knee replacement could help to reduce the risk of mortality after this procedure. We assessed secular trends in death within 45 ...days of knee replacement for osteoarthritis in England and Wales, with the aim of investigating whether any change that we recorded could be explained by alterations in modifiable perioperative factors. Methods We took data for knee replacements done for osteoarthritis in England and Wales between April 1, 2003, and Dec 31, 2011, from the National Joint Registry for England and Wales. Patient identifiers were used to link these data to the national mortality database and the Hospital Episode Statistics database to obtain details of death, sociodemographics, and comorbidity. We assessed mortality within 45 days by Kaplan-Meier analysis and assessed the role of patient and treatment factors by Cox proportional hazards models. Findings 467 779 primary knee replacements were done to treat osteoarthritis during 9 years. 1183 patients died within 45 days of surgery, with a substantial secular decrease in mortality from 0·37% in 2003 to 0·20% in 2011, even after adjustment for age, sex, and comorbidity. The use of unicompartmental knee replacement was associated with substantially lower mortality than was total knee replacement (hazard ratio HR 0·32, 95% CI 0·19–0·54, p<0·0005). Several comorbidities were associated with increased mortality: myocardial infarction (HR 3·46, 95% CI 2·81–4·14, p<0·0005), cerebrovascular disease (3·35, 2·7–4·14, p<0·0005), moderate/severe liver disease (7·2, 3·93–13·21, p<0·0005), and renal disease (2·18, 1·76–2·69, p<0·0005). Modifiable perioperative risk factors, including surgical approach and thromboprophylaxis were not associated with mortality. Interpretation Postoperative mortality after knee replacement has fallen substantially between 2003 and 2011. Efforts to further reduce mortality should concentrate more on older patients, those who are male and those with specific comorbidities, such as myocardial infarction, cerebrovascular disease, liver disease, and renal disease. Funding National Joint Registry for England and Wales.
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