Prevention of Delirium in Older Adults With Dementia: A Systematic Literature Review
Journal of Gerontological Nursing
Schnitker, L., Nović, A., et al. (2020).
Journal of Gerontological Nursing, 46(10), 43-54.
<div>This systematic review investigates the effect of interventions targeting delirium in older adults with dementia. Only those interventions within the scope of speech-language pathology will be included in this summary.</div>
National Health and Medical Research Council Dementia Centre for Research Collaboration (Australia); Queensland University of Technology Institute of Health and Biomedical Innovation (Australia)
From database inception to February 2019
<div>Randomized-controlled trials and non-randomized/quasi-experimental trials</div>
7
<div>Findings regarding non-pharmacological interventions for delirium prevention in older adults with dementia were as follows:</div>
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<ul>
<li>Reorientation combined with usual care (e.g. sensory input, hydration and nutrition) reduced delirium incidence (Relative Risk Reduction [RRR] = 66%; 1 study);</li>
<li>Multidisciplinary intervention including staff education significantly improved delirium (RRR = 0.3; 1 study);</li>
<li>Pre-printed orders addressing delirium risk factors led to significantly less delirium (RRR = 0.4; 1 study);</li>
<li>Delirium training for staff and delirium prevention protocol led to fewer cases of delirium (RRR = 0.83; 1 study); and</li>
<li>Preventive staff education addressing delirium awareness and risk factors resulted in fewer cases of delirium (RRR = 0.62; 1 study).</li>
</ul>
<div>Limitations to this review included potential for publication bias due to including only studies published in English.</div>
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