ICU Management & Practice, ICU Volume 15 - Issue 4 - 2015
- Delirium (acute brain dysfunction) can be a complication of critical illness.
- Brain organ dysfunction can manifest as a continuum of psychomotor behaviors that are categorised as hyperactive or hypoactive.
- Delirium can be diagnosed using validated and reliable bedside tools.
- Implementation of delirium monitoring can be enhanced by scheduled in-depth discussions about brain organ dysfunction via multidisciplinary rounds with the medical team.
- Delirium may be managed with use of non-pharmacologic and, if necessary, pharmacologic interventions thereafter.
Acute brain dysfunction is common in the critical care setting, presenting as delirium or coma. Delirium is a clinical syndrome of brain dysfunction characterised by an acute change or fluctuating course of altered mental status, inattention, and a disturbance of consciousness, cognition, or perception, such that a patient’s ability to receive, process, store, and recall information is impaired (American Psychiatric Association 2013).
See Also: Sedation in Acute Brain Injury: Less is More?
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