Preoperative Risk Assessment for Delirium After Noncardiac Surgery

Description: Delirium is a common postoperative complication in older adults associated with adverse events including functional decline, longer lengths of stay, and risk of institutionalization. The purpose of this article is to systematically review preoperative risk factors associated with delirium following noncardiac surgery.
A medical literature search was conducted using several bibliographic databases (PubMed, CINAHL, Cochrane, PsychInfo), supplemented by a manual search of the references of retrieved articles.
Individual risk factor analysis suggested that cognitive impairment, older age, functional impairment, sensory impairment, depression, preoperative psychotropic drug use, psychopathological symptoms, institutional residence, and greater comorbidity were associated with postoperative delirium. Of the risk factors examined, evidence was most robust for an association between delirium and cognitive impairment or psychotropic drug use, with moderate effect sizes for both.
Preoperative Risk Assessment for Delirium After Noncardiac Surgery: A Systematic Review Monidipa Dasgupta, MSc, MD, FRCP*; Andrea C. Dumbrell, MA J Am Geriatr Soc. 2006;54(10):1578-1589 full text