Impact of dexmedetomidine-assisted anesthesia in elderly patients undergoing radical resection of colon cancer.

BACKGROUND: Radical resection of colon cancer under general anesthesia is one of the main treatment methods for this malignancy. However, due to the physiological characteristics of elderly patients, the safety of perioperative anesthesia needs special attention. As an α2-adrenergic receptor agonist, dexmedetomidine (Dex) has attracted much attention from anesthesiologists due to its stabilizing effect on heart rate and blood pressure, inhibitory effect on inflammation, and sedative and analgesic effects. Its application in general anesthesia may have a positive impact on the quality of anesthesia and postoperative recovery in elderly patients undergoing radical resection of colon cancer. AIM: To investigate the anesthetic effects of Dex during radical surgery for colon cancer under general anesthesia in elderly patients. METHODS: A total of 165 colon cancer patients who underwent radical surgery for colon cancer under general anesthesia at Qingdao University Affiliated Haici Hospital, Qingdao, China were recruited and divided into two groups: A and B. In group A, Dex was administered 30 min before surgery, while group B received an equivalent amount of normal saline. The hemodynamic changes, pulmonary compliance, airway pressure, inflammatory factors, confusion assessment method scores, Ramsay Sedation-Agitation Scale scores, and cellular immune function indicators were compared between the two groups. RESULTS: Group A showed less intraoperative hemodynamic fluctuations, better pulmonary compliance, and lower airway resistance compared with group B. Twelve hours after the surgery, the serum levels of TLR-2, TLR-4, IL-6, and TNF-α in group A were significantly lower than those of group B (P < 0.05). After extubation, the Ramsay Sedation-Agitation Scale score of group A patients was significantly higher than that of group B patients, indicating a higher level of sedation. The incidence of delirium was significantly lower in group A than in group B (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: The use of Dex as an adjunct to general anesthesia for radical surgery in elderly patients with colon cancer results in better effectiveness of anesthesia.

Optimizing ChatGPT's Interpretation and Reporting of Delirium Assessment Outcomes: Exploratory Study.

BACKGROUND: Generative artificial intelligence (AI) and large language models, such as OpenAI's ChatGPT, have shown promising potential in supporting medical education and clinical decision-making, given their vast knowledge base and natural language processing capabilities. As a general purpose AI system, ChatGPT can complete a wide range of tasks, including differential diagnosis without additional training. However, the specific application of ChatGPT in learning and applying a series of specialized, context-specific tasks mimicking the workflow of a human assessor, such as administering a standardized assessment questionnaire, followed by inputting assessment results in a standardized form, and interpretating assessment results strictly following credible, published scoring criteria, have not been thoroughly studied. OBJECTIVE: This exploratory study aims to evaluate and optimize ChatGPT's capabilities in administering and interpreting the Sour Seven Questionnaire, an informant-based delirium assessment tool. Specifically, the objectives were to train ChatGPT-3.5 and ChatGPT-4 to understand and correctly apply the Sour Seven Questionnaire to clinical vignettes using prompt engineering, assess the performance of these AI models in identifying and scoring delirium symptoms against scores from human experts, and refine and enhance the models' interpretation and reporting accuracy through iterative prompt optimization. METHODS: We used prompt engineering to train ChatGPT-3.5 and ChatGPT-4 models on the Sour Seven Questionnaire, a tool for assessing delirium through caregiver input. Prompt engineering is a methodology used to enhance the AI's processing of inputs by meticulously structuring the prompts to improve accuracy and consistency in outputs. In this study, prompt engineering involved creating specific, structured commands that guided the AI models in understanding and applying the assessment tool's criteria accurately to clinical vignettes. This approach also included designing prompts to explicitly instruct the AI on how to format its responses, ensuring they were consistent with clinical documentation standards. RESULTS: Both ChatGPT models demonstrated promising proficiency in applying the Sour Seven Questionnaire to the vignettes, despite initial inconsistencies and errors. Performance notably improved through iterative prompt engineering, enhancing the models' capacity to detect delirium symptoms and assign scores. Prompt optimizations included adjusting the scoring methodology to accept only definitive "Yes" or "No" responses, revising the evaluation prompt to mandate responses in a tabular format, and guiding the models to adhere to the 2 recommended actions specified in the Sour Seven Questionnaire. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings provide preliminary evidence supporting the potential utility of AI models such as ChatGPT in administering standardized clinical assessment tools. The results highlight the significance of context-specific training and prompt engineering in harnessing the full potential of these AI models for health care applications. Despite the encouraging results, broader generalizability and further validation in real-world settings warrant additional research.

Persistent delirium is associated with cerebrospinal fluid markers of neuronal injury.

Delirium is associated with the risk of future long-term cognitive impairment, but the degree to which markers of neuronal injury may be distinct or shared with dementia has yet to be comprehensively described. We investigated CSF biomarkers of dementia, astrocytosis and neuronal damage in a clinical cohort with persistent delirium, comparing them with an outpatient memory clinic sample. Our aim was to determine if different patterns of biomarker changes could implicate specific mechanisms for delirium-related neuronal injury over and above that attributable to comorbid dementia. We recruited 35 participants from the Prince of Wales Hospital, Sydney, Australia. We included inpatients with delirium persisting for at least 5 days (n = 15, 10 with underlying dementia) and participants from outpatient memory clinics (n = 20, 17 with dementia). CSF assays were as follows: amyloid-ß42, amyloid-ß40, phosphorylated tau181, neurofilament light chain and glial fibrillary acidic protein. We used propensity score matching to estimate effect sizes for each standardized CSF biomarker separately for persistent delirium (irrespective of underlying dementia) and dementia (irrespective of superimposed delirium). Compared with individuals without delirium, persistent delirium was associated with elevated glial fibrillary acidic protein (normalized coefficient per transformed standard deviation, ß = 0.85; 95% confidence interval: 0.03-1.68) and neurofilament light chain (ß = 1.1; 95% confidence interval: 0.5-1.6), but not phosphorylated tau181. Compared with individuals without dementia, glial fibrillary acidic protein, neurofilament light chain and phosphorylated tau181 were all increased to expected levels in dementia cases, with the former two biomarkers at levels comparable to those seen in persistent delirium [glial fibrillary acidic protein (ß = 1.54; 95% confidence interval: 1.05-2.0) and neurofilament light chain (ß = 0.65; 95% confidence interval: 0.24-1.1)]. Persistent delirium was linked with changes in CSF biomarkers not necessarily attributable to dementia. These findings support the potential that delirium is associated with direct neuronal injury independent of dementia pathophysiology. Whether this neuronal injury involves astrocyte dysfunction or direct axonal damage are both possibilities. Future work examining acute brain injury in delirium is needed.

Postoperative Altered Mental Status: A Case Report and Diagnostic Dilemma.

Postoperative altered mental status (AMS) is a prevalent and complex issue that poses a significant diagnostic challenge in the clinical setting. Clinical presentation consists of cognitive disturbances that can range from mild confusion to coma. Given the complexity and variability of AMS, each patient requires a careful and thorough evaluation to identify the underlying cause. Thus, we present a case of a 57-year-old male with confirmed left knee septic arthritis, whose admission was complicated by AMS following several incision and drainage procedures. We highlight the importance of considering a broad differential diagnosis when evaluating postoperative AMS, including electrolyte disturbances and systemic conditions. The case also discusses the importance of early recognition, interdisciplinary collaboration, and a comprehensive diagnostic strategy. By adopting a comprehensive and collaborative approach, healthcare providers can optimize patient outcomes and minimize complications in postoperative AMS cases. The patient's AMS was ultimately attributed to a combination of metabolic disturbances, drug-related factors, and systemic conditions. His severe psychiatric symptoms were successfully managed with targeted pharmacologic interventions.

Gut Microbiota and Probiotics in Perioperative Management: A Narrative Review.

The human gut is the abode of several complex and diverse microbes. It is a fact that the human brain is interconnected with the spinal cord and sense organs; however, there is also a possibility of a connection between the brain and the gut microbiome. The human gut can be altered in various ways, the principal method being the intake of prebiotics, probiotics and synbiotics. Can this alteration in the gut microbiome be clinically utilised in the perioperative period? We conducted a literature search related to this topic using databases and search engines (Medical Literature Analysis and Retrieval System Online {MEDLINE}, Embase, Scopus, PubMed and Google Scholar). The search revealed some preclinical and clinical studies in animals and humans that demonstrate the alteration of the gut microbiome with the use of anxiolysis, probiotics/prebiotics and other perioperative factors including opioids, anaesthetics and perioperative stress. The significant effects of this alteration have been seen on preoperative anxiety and postoperative delirium/cognitive dysfunction/pain. These effects are described in this narrative review, which opens up newer vistas for high-quality research related to the gut microbiome, gut-brain axis, the related signaling pathways and their clinical application in the perioperative period.

Author Response: Nocturnal Infusion of Low-dose Dexmedetomidine and Propofol for Delirium Prevention.

How to cite this article: Ekkapat G, Chokengarmwong N. Author Response: Nocturnal Infusion of Low-dose Dexmedetomidine and Propofol for Delirium Prevention. Indian J Crit Care Med 2024;28(9):896.

Nocturnal Infusion of Low-dose Dexmedetomidine and Propofol for Prevention of Delirium Occurring in the ICU after Hip Fracture Surgery in Elderly Patients.

How to cite this article: Cong N, Wang D, Xue F. Nocturnal Infusion of Low-dose Dexmedetomidine and Propofol for Prevention of Delirium Occurring in the ICU after Hip Fracture Surgery in Elderly Patients. Indian J Crit Care Med 2024;28(9):894-895.

Dexmedetomidine for Postoperative Delirium Prevention in the Older Adult: An Integrative Review.

The brain and cognition are particularly vulnerable to anesthetic and surgical insults, with postoperative delirium being the most common postoperative complication in patients aged ≥ 65 years. The body releases psychoactive proinflammatory cytokines in response to surgical trauma, including interleukin-1ß, interleukin-6, and tumor necrosis factor-α. This promotes a porous blood-brain barrier, promoting postoperative cognitive dysfunction. Aging adults lose brain volume, cerebrospinal fluid, and dendritic synapses, thereby increasing neurologic stress and vulnerability to these surgical changes. Anesthetic technique influences the process, necessitating the importance of educated certified registered nurse anesthetists. Dexmedetomidine, a nonspecific α2-adrenergic receptor agonist, exhibits anti-inflammatory properties that counteract the proinflammatory mechanisms initiated by surgical insult. Additionally, dexmedetomidine mimics natural sleep pathways and reduces opioid dosing requirements, promoting cognitive preservation. While further research is required to establish an association with long-term effects, current literature indicates that dexmedetomidine may reduce postoperative delirium and cognitive dysfunction in older adults through various dosing regimens. This journal course reviews the pathophysiology of postoperative neurocognitive dysfunction and delirium, dexmedetomidine as an adjunct to mitigate these pathologic changes, and the current literature on dexmedetomidine's impact on postoperative delirium in older adults.

You are safe here: A flyer with re-orientating messages for families of patients with delirium in the intensive care unit.

Patients in delirium require trustful communication and re-orientation. We developed a flyer with positive, re-orientating suggestions for families of delirious patients in intensive care units. Suggestions include creating a safe environment, interpreting unusual behaviours positively and fostering mental resilience. Additionally, families are encouraged to prioritize their own well-being, recognizing their crucial role in supporting their loved ones. This flyer offers practical strategies across four key areas: ensuring security and orientation, reframing noises and body experiences, managing agitation and reshaping perceptions. By equipping families with knowledge and tools, this resource aims to promote understanding, resilience and strength to humanize delirium care.

Corrigendum: Frailty index and risk of delirium in hospitalized patients: a two-sample Mendelian randomization study.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.3389/fmed.2024.1361437.].

No substantial neurocognitive impact of COVID-19 across ages and disease severity: a multicenter biomarker study of SARS-CoV-2 positive and negative adult and pediatric patients with acute respiratory tract infections.

BACKGROUND: Compared to intensive care unit patients with SARS-CoV-2 negative acute respiratory tract infections, patients with SARS-CoV-2 are supposed to develop more frequently and more severely neurologic sequelae. Delirium and subsequent neurocognitive deficits (NCD) have implications for patients' morbidity and mortality. However, the extent of brain injury during acute COVID-19 and subsequent NCD still remain largely unexplored. Body-fluid biomarkers may offer valuable insights into the quantification of acute delirium, brain injury and may help to predict subsequent NCD following COVID-19. METHODS: In a multicenter, observational case-control study, conducted across four German University Hospitals, hospitalized adult and pediatric patients with an acute COVID-19 and SARS-CoV-2 negative controls presenting with acute respiratory tract infections were included. Study procedures comprised the assessment of pre-existing neurocognitive function, daily screening for delirium, neurological examination and blood sampling. Fourteen biomarkers indicative of neuroaxonal, glial, neurovascular injury and inflammation were analyzed. Neurocognitive functions were re-evaluated after three months. RESULTS: We enrolled 118 participants (90 adults, 28 children). The incidence of delirium [85 out of 90 patients (94.4%) were assessable for delirium) was comparable between patients with COVID-19 [16 out of 61 patients (26.2%)] and SARS-CoV-2 negative controls [8 out of 24 patients (33.3%); p > 0.05] across adults and children. No differences in outcomes as measured by the modified Rankin Scale, the Short-Blessed Test, the Informant Questionnaire on Cognitive Decline in the Elderly, and the pediatrics cerebral performance category scale were observed after three months. Levels of body-fluid biomarkers were generally elevated in both adult and pediatric cohorts, without significant differences between SARS-CoV-2 negative controls and COVID-19. In COVID-19 patients experiencing delirium, levels of GFAP and MMP-9 were significantly higher compared to those without delirium. CONCLUSIONS: Delirium and subsequent NCD are not more frequent in COVID-19 as compared to SARS-CoV-2 negative patients with acute respiratory tract infections. Consistently, biomarker levels of brain injury indicated no differences between COVID-19 cases and SARS-CoV-2 negative controls. Our data suggest that delirium in COVID-19 does not distinctly trigger substantial and persistent subsequent NCD compared to patients with other acute respiratory tract infections. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT04359914; date of registration 24-APR 2020.

Perioperative Risk Factors for Postoperative Delirium in Non-Dementia Older Patients after Non-Cardiac Surgery and Anesthesia: A Prospective Study.

Background: To investigate the incidence and perioperative risk factors for postoperative delirium (POD) in non-dementia older patients who underwent anesthesia for non-cardiac surgery. Methods: This prospective cohort study was conducted on 195 non-dementia older patients, aged 60 years or older, who were hospitalized after non-cardiac surgery and anesthesia. The Confusion Assessment Method for the Intensive Care Unit (CAM-ICU) was used to evaluate the occurrence of POD. Incidence of POD was reported. We conducted univariate and multivariate logistic regression to identify the risk factors associated with POD. Results: 195 patients were enrolled; 172 completed the study. POD occurred in seven patients within three days after anesthesia, which is a 4.1% incidence of POD. Multivariate logistic analysis showed arrhythmia, coagulopathy, urinary comorbidity, minimum intraoperative heart rate, and minimum post-anesthesia care unit (PACU) pain score as independent risk factors for POD. A minimum PACU pain score > 1 is the optimum cutoff pain score for developing POD, with a sensitivity of 85.7% and a specificity of 69.1%. The postoperative complication rate and in-hospital mortality were significantly higher for patients with POD compared to those without POD. Conclusion: The incidence of POD in the study population is 4.1%. Arrhythmia, coagulopathy, urinary comorbidity, minimum intraoperative heart rate, and minimum PACU pain score were independent risk factors for POD. The minimum PACU pain score is the strongest independent risk factor of POD. POD is associated with increased postoperative complications and in-hospital mortality rates in non-dementia older patients.

Postoperative delirium: A tragedy for elderly cancer patients.

In this editorial, we comment on the article by Hu et al entitled "Predictive modeling for postoperative delirium in elderly patients with abdominal malignancies using synthetic minority oversampling technique". We wanted to draw attention to the general features of postoperative delirium (POD) as well as the areas where there are uncertainties and contradictions. POD can be defined as acute neurocognitive dysfunction that occurs in the first week after surgery. It is a severe postoperative complication, especially for elderly oncology patients. Although the underlying pathophysiological mechanism is not fully understood, various neuroinflammatory mechanisms and neurotransmitters are thought to be involved. Various assessment scales and diagnostic methods have been proposed for the early diagnosis of POD. As delirium is considered a preventable clinical entity in about half of the cases, various early prediction models developed with the support of machine learning have recently become a hot scientific topic. Unfortunately, a model with high sensitivity and specificity for the prediction of POD has not yet been reported. This situation reveals that all health personnel who provide health care services to elderly patients should approach patients with a high level of awareness in the perioperative period regarding POD.

The effect of two different modes of anaesthesia maintenance on postoperative delirium in elderly patient with low preoperative mini-cog score.

BACKGROUND: Postoperative delirium is a common distressing symptom experienced following laparoscopic cholecystectomy. The study aimed to investigate the influence of a low preoperative Mini-Cog testing score and 2 different anesthesia methods: total intravenous anaesthesia (TIVA) versus sevoflurane, on postoperative delirium in elderly patients undergoing laparoscopic cholecystectomy. METHODS: A total of 84 patients over 60 years old who underwent laparoscopic cholecystectomy between March 1and - October 1 2023 were included in the study. Patients with a Mini-Cog score of 0-2 were considered to have low and possibly impaired neurocognitive function. We invastigated the effects of preoperative Mini-Cog score and the two anesthesia methods used on the incidence of postoperative delirium. RESULTS: The proportion of patients with low Mini-Cog score in the preoperative period was 17.9%. Sevoflurane and TIVA was used in 41 and 43 patients respectively. The incidence of postoperative delirium in patients with low preoperative Mini-Cog scores was 66.7% at postoperative 0 h and 33.3% at the 1st hours. Postoperative delirium was found to be statistically higher in patients with low Mini-cog scores than in those with negatively-screened for Mini-cog scores (p: 0.01-0.035). In patients using sevoflurane, the incidence of postoperative delirium was 26.8% and 24.4% at the 0 and 1st hours, respectively. This was found to be statistically higher than in patients receiving TIVA (p: 0.036 - 0.010). CONCLUSION: Low Mini-Cog score was an indicator of a higher risk of early postoperative delirium. Sevoflurane is more likely to cause postoperative delirium than TIVA. TRIAL REGISTRATION: The study was registered on ClinicalTrials.gov (Identifier: NCT06597812) .

Association of preoperative frailty with risk of postoperative delirium in older patients undergoing craniotomy: a prospective cohort study.

BACKGROUND: Preoperative frailty is a risk factor associated with postoperative delirium (POD), which has attracted more attention from clinicians, but no research has shown that it is related to elderly patients undergoing craniotomy. Therefore, the aim of this study was to determine the effect of preoperative frailty on POD in older patients, especially those who underwent craniotomy. METHODS: From October 2022 to May 2023, older patients who underwent elective craniotomy were collected. Assess the occurrence of frailty using the FRAIL scale one day before surgery. Evaluate the occurrence of POD using the Confusion Assessment Method (CAM) within three days after surgery. Participants were divided into two groups, one group being POD, Logistic regression analysis was used to find the risk variables for POD, and the predictive value of preoperative frailty to POD was determined by using the operating characteristic curve of the subjects. RESULTS: A total of 300 patients were included in this study, among whom 83 patients (27.7%) exhibited preoperative frailty and 69 patients (23.0%) experienced POD. The results of the multivariate logistic regression analysis indicate that preoperative frailty (OR: 8.816, 95% CI: 3.972-19.572), preoperative hypoalbuminemia (OR: 0.893, 95% CI: 0.811-0.984), low BMI (OR: 0.793, 95% CI: 0.698-0.901), and prolonged operative duration (OR: 1.007, 95% CI: 1.004-1.010) are independent risk factors for POD in older patients who underwent craniotomy. We constructed a risk prediction model using these factors, which had an area under the ROC curve of 0.908 (95% CI: 0.869-0.947, P < 0.001). Preoperative frailty enhanced the discriminative ability of the prediction model by 0.037. POD was associated with a longer length of hospital stay and higher hospitalization costs. CONCLUSIONS: Preoperative frailty is an independent risk factor for POD in older patients undergoing elective craniotomy and can predict the occurrence of POD to a certain extent. In addition, early identification of patients at risk of malnutrition and appropriate surgical planning can reduce the incidence of POD.

Cerebrovascular pulsatility indicates preoperative subcortical cognitive impairment and an increased risk for postoperative delirium in elderly patients undergoing elective spine surgery.

Introduction: Advances in spine surgery enable safe interventions in elderly patients, but perioperative neurocognitive disorders (pNCD), such as post-operative delirium (POD) and cognitive dysfunction (POCD), remain a serious concern. Pre-operative cognitive impairment is a major risk factor for pNCD. Comprehensive pre-operative cognitive assessments are not feasible in clinical practice, making effective screening methods desirable. This study investigates whether pre-operative cerebrovascular duplex sonography can assess subcortical (vascular) cognitive impairment and the risk for POD. Methods: This prospective single-center study recruited patients aged ≥60 years scheduled for elective spine surgery at a German university hospital. Patients underwent pre-operative assessments including cognitive abilities (CERAD test battery), structural MRI, and cerebrovascular duplex sonography. POD screening was conducted three times daily for at least 3 days. The primary hypothesis, that the mean pulsatility index (PI) of both internal carotid arteries (ICA) predicts POD risk, was tested using logistic regression. Secondary analyses examined the association between POD risk and ICA flow (time-averaged peak velocities, TAPV) and correlations with cognitive profiles and MRI characteristics. Results: POD occurred in 22% of patients (n = 22/99) within three postoperative days. Patients with POD were significantly older (75.9 ± 5.4 vs. 70.0 ± 6.9 years, p < 0.01) but did not differ by gender (p = 0.51). ICA PI significantly predicted POD risk (OR = 5.46 [95%CI: 1.81-16.49], p = 0.003), which remained significant after adjustment for age and duration of surgery (ORadj = 6.38 [95% CI: 1.77-23.03], p = 0.005). TAPV did not inform the POD risk (p = 0.68). ICA PI Pre-operative cognitive scores were significantly associated with ICA PI (mean CERAD score: r = -0.32, p < 0.001). ICA PI was also significantly associated with total white matter lesion volume (τ = 0.19, p = 0.012) and periventricular white matter lesion volume (τ = 0.21, p = 0.007). Discussion: This is the first study to demonstrate that cerebrovascular duplex sonography can assess the risk for POD in elderly spine surgery patients. Increased ICA PI may indicate subcortical impairment, larger white matter lesion load, and lower white matter volume, predisposing factors for POD. Pre-operative cerebrovascular duplex sonography of the ICA is widely available, easy-to-use, and efficient, offering a promising screening method for POD risk. Increased ICA PI could supplement established predictors like age to adjust surgical and peri-operative procedures to individual risk profiles.

Refining Research Diagnostic Criteria for Catatonia Among Delirium, Medical, Affective, and Psychosis Patient Groups.

OBJECTIVE: The authors proposed catatonia diagnostic criteria that require the presence of three neuropsychiatric symptom clusters, rated over 24 hours; this system differs from other symptom clustering proposals and is intended to increase diagnostic rigor over Bush-Francis Catatonia Rating Scale (BFCRS) or DSM-5 criteria. METHODS: By applying new BFCRS item score thresholds, symptoms were clustered into three categories to comprise the Research Diagnostic Criteria for Catatonia (RDCC): akinesia (criterion A), unusual motor signs (criterion B), and behavioral signs (criterion C). RDCC symptom clusters were analyzed in four prospectively evaluated patient groups (delirium, medical, affective, and psychosis) (N=341). RESULTS: Use of the RDCC, compared with the DSM-5-TR and BFCRS, resulted in far fewer diagnoses of catatonia in the four patient groups: medical, N=1 out of 42 (2%); affective, N=1 out of 45 (2%); psychosis, N=3 out of 53 (6%); and delirium, N=0 out of 201. Permutations of the RDCC with more relaxed criteria were assessed, requiring either symptom thresholds or numbers of symptoms to meet criteria, resulting in catatonia rate gradations between those obtained with the RDCC and those obtained with current systems. The Cochrane Q test found that the DSM-5-TR was not dissimilar to the RDCC, if fulfilling numerical thresholds for criteria A-C, although any level of symptom severity was allowed. Confirmatory factor analysis with three goodness-of-fit indexes validated the RDCC. CONCLUSIONS: The RDCC requires akinetic symptoms on the basis of literature demonstrating their high BFCRS prevalence and exploratory factor analysis co-loadings, plus symptoms from unusual motor and behavioral signs. Compared with current lenient diagnostic approaches, having the symptoms required by the RDCC produced lower catatonia rates in the psychosis, affective, and medical groups and revealed no patients with catatonia in the delirium group. Subdividing DSM-5-TR symptoms into several different criteria may improve diagnosis. RDCC symptom clusters are both research data-based and amenable to further research for validation.

Evaluation of the effects of a team-based systematic prevention and management program for postoperative orthopedic older patients: A retrospective cohort study.

Aim: This study aimed to evaluate a team-based systematic prevention and management program for delirium (a multicomponent intervention addressing potentially modifiable risk factors based on the DELirium Team Approach [DELTA]) in older patients undergoing orthopedic surgery within a real-world clinical setting. The DELTA program was initiated at our hospital in January 2019. Methods: A retrospective before-after study was conducted during a preintervention period (January 1, 2017 to December 31, 2018) and a postintervention period (January 1, 2020 to December 31, 2021) at orthopedic wards of an advanced acute care hospital in Japan. A total of 787 inpatients were evaluated before the preintervention period, and 833 inpatients were evaluated after the postintervention period. Results: After the DELTA program's implementation, a significant decrease in benzodiazepine receptor agonist prescriptions (odds ratio [OR], 0.39; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.29-0.53) and an increase in prescriptions of either melatonin receptor agonists or dual orexin receptor antagonists (OR, 3.83; 95% CI, 2.49-5.88) were observed. However, no significant difference was observed in the incidence of falls, self-extubation, or required level of medical and nursing care, including risky behavior and inability to follow medical or care instructions following the intervention, despite a reduction in the length of hospital stay and institutionalization. Conclusion: Implementing the DELTA program for older patients undergoing orthopedic surgery contributed to optimizing the prescription of hypnotics; however, the impact on other patient outcomes, such as falls, self-extubation, and required level of medical and nursing care was limited.

Translation, cultural debugging, and validation of the Chinese version of the Sour Seven Questionnaire: a cross-sectional study.

Introduction: Intensive care unit delirium (ICUD) is an acute cerebral dysfunction accompanied by a change of level of consciousness, disorientation, and cognitive dysfunction, typically occurring over a short duration ranging from hours to days and resulting from underlying medical causes. Family members may sometimes detect changes in consciousness earlier than medical staff. The Sour Seven Questionnaire is a tool to assist family members in screening for delirium, but there is currently no Chinese version. This study aimed to translate and cross-culturally debug the Sour Seven Questionnaire and test the effectiveness of the Chinese version in screening for ICUD by family members. Methods: To create the Chinese version of the questionnaire, the questionnaire was first translated and then culturally debugged through expert consultation and cognitive interviews. Patients and their family members admitted to three ICUs in a Chinese hospital were selected to test the Chinese version of the Sour Seven Questionnaire and the results were compared with those of the validated and recommended Confusion Assessment Method for the intensive care unit (CAM-ICU) assessment. Results: A total of 190 ICU patients and their families were included in this study. Results of the CAM-ICU assessment showed that 73 (38.4%) patients developed ICUD compared to the 66 (34.7%) using the Chinese version of the Sour Seven Questionnaire, which had a Cohen's kappa coefficient of 0.853, a sensitivity of 0.863, and a specificity of 0.974. The positive predictive value was 0.954 and the negative predictive value was 0.919. Discussion: The Chinese version of the Sour Seven Questionnaire is a valid assessment tool for helping families screen for ICUD, and it is effective in identifying altered consciousness in patients even during online visits.