Impact of a geriatric consultation service on outcomes in older trauma patients: a before-after study.

PURPOSE: Early geriatric involvement is recommended for older trauma patients. We wished to determine the impact of geriatric consultation on mortality, hospital length of stay and discharge disposition in older patients who were admitted to our Level 1 trauma unit. METHODS: We completed a health records review of trauma unit patients, age ≥ 75 years old with Injury Severity Score (ISS) ≥ 12, before (11/2015-10/2017) and after (11/2017-10/2019) implementation of a geriatric trauma consultation initiative. Primary outcomes were mortality, hospital length of stay and discharge destination. Secondary objectives were adherence to the geriatric trauma consult process and identification of geriatric-specific issues. A multivariable analysis controlling for age, gender, multi-morbidity and ISS was undertaken. RESULTS: 157 patients pre-implementation and 172 post-implementation with mean age 83.8 years and 53.8% females were included. Geriatric consultation had no impact on in-hospital mortality [OR 0.70 (95% CI 0.31-1.58)] or length of stay [ß 0.68 (95%CI - 1.35-2.72)]. Patients who received a geriatric consultation were more likely to be discharged home (OR 2.01 (95% CI 1.24-3.24). The adherence to consultation process was 99.4%. Mobility, pain and cognitive impairment were the most common geriatric concerns, identified in 76.6, 61.1 and 50.0% of older trauma patients, respectively. CONCLUSION: Older trauma patients that receive geriatric trauma consultation are more likely to be discharged home. Collaboration between trauma and geriatric specialists is beneficial and may lead to meaningful improvements in outcomes for older trauma patients.

A systematic review and meta-analysis evaluating geriatric consultation on older trauma patients.

BACKGROUND: Early involvement of geriatrics is recommended for older trauma patients. OBJECTIVE: This systematic review aimed to determine the impact of a geriatric assessment on mortality, hospital length of stay, discharge destination, and delirium incidence in patients 65 years and older admitted to a trauma center. METHODS: The protocol was developed according to Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-analysis guidelines and registered in PROSPERO (CRD42019131870). Search of five databases was completed April 2019. Two independent reviewers completed screening, full text review, and data abstraction. Meta-analysis was performed on outcomes with at least two studies. RESULTS: A total of 928 unique citations were identified; eight were included in the final analysis. All were cohort studies, most of moderate to poor quality using the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale. We found hospital length of stay decreased by mean of 1.11 days (95% confidence interval, 0.79-1.43), but mortality was unchanged (odds ratio, 1.01; 95% confidence interval, 0.74-1.38) in older patients admitted to a trauma center who had a geriatric consultation. Meta-analysis of discharge destination and delirium incidence was not performed due to heterogeneity. CONCLUSIONS: This is the first systematic review and meta-analysis to evaluate outcomes in older patients admitted to a trauma center after implementation of a geriatric trauma consultation service. We found a decrease in hospital length of stay but insufficient evidence of change in in-hospital mortality in older patients who received a geriatric consultation as part of their trauma care compared with those that received standard trauma care only. There is a need for more methodologically rigorous research in geriatric trauma. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Systematic review and meta-analysis, level III.

Prospective Validation of the Ottawa 3DY Scale by Geriatric Emergency Management Nurses to Identify Impaired Cognition in Older Emergency Department Patients.

STUDY OBJECTIVE: Assessment of older emergency department (ED) patients with cognitive impairment is challenging because few tools exist that can be quickly administered by front-line practitioners. Our objective is to validate the Ottawa 3DY Scale, a 4-question screening tool for cognitive impairment, in older ED patients and compare its performance with that of the Animal Fluency Test. METHODS: We conducted a prospective cohort study in 2 EDs and enrolled a convenience sample of patients aged 75 years or older with no history of cognitive impairment. Eligible patients were assessed by geriatric emergency management nurses who administered the Mini-Mental State Examination, ordered with the Ottawa 3DY Scale questions first, followed by the Animal Fluency Test. Mini-Mental State Examination score less than 25 was our criterion standard for cognitive impairment. RESULTS: Study patients (N=238) had a mean age of 81.9 years and were 60.1% women, and 26.5% were admitted to the hospital. The Ottawa 3DY Scale and Mini-Mental State Examination were in agreement for 75.6% of cases, with a sensitivity of 93.8% (95% confidence interval [CI] 77.8% to 98.9%) and specificity of 72.8% (95% CI 66.1% to 78.7%). The Animal Fluency Test score less than 15 and Mini-Mental State Examination score were in agreement for 46.2% of cases, with sensitivity 90.6% (95% CI 73.8% to 97.5%) and specificity 39.3% (95% CI 32.7% to 46.4%). CONCLUSION: Both the Ottawa 3DY Scale and the Animal Fluency Test demonstrated excellent sensitivity versus the Mini-Mental State Examination; however, the Animal Fluency Test exhibited poor specificity. The Ottawa 3DY Scale is an effective tool to screen for cognitive impairment in older ED patients, and its use may facilitate improved care in this vulnerable population.