Keywords
Abstract
INTRODUCTION: Delirium is understood as an acute change in mental status, with a wide variety of neuropsychiatric signs and symptoms, with a fluctuating course, explained by disturbances in cerebral homeostasis, which mainly affect the elderly. OBJECTIVE: To assess the prevalence of delirium and associated risk factors in elderly people who are in the ward and intensive care units (ICUs) of an Emergency Hospital. METHODOLOGY: Analytical cross-sectional study, carried out with elderly people admitted to the wards and ICUs of an Emergency Hospital in Goiás. An evaluation form created by the researchers was applied and finally the CAM-ICU scale was applied in the ICU`s and the 3D-CAM scale in the wards to detect delirium. In addition, a visual analogue scale was used to assess pain. RESULTS: The prevalence of delirium in the current study was 18.6%. No association was found between delirium and length of stay, polypharmacy and age. We found an association between delirium and physical restraint. CONCLUSION: The number of individuals with delirium in our sample is similar to that found in the literature of hospitals with similar patient profiles, finding a prevalence of 18.6% of delirium, with physical restraint being associated with the presence of delirium.