title: Frequency of full, partial and no recovery from subsyndromal deliriumin older hospital inpatients.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To determine the frequencies of full, partial and no recovery from subsyndromal delirium (SSD) in older hospital inpatients. A secondary objective was to compare the recovery status of patients with SSD or delirium.
  
  
  METHODS
  SSD was defined as acute onset of one or more Confusion Assessment Method core symptoms of delirium (fluctuation, inattention, disorganized thinking and altered level of consciousness) not meeting criteria for delirium and not progressing to delirium. The recovery status of medical or surgical inpatients aged 65 and older with SSD was assessed approximately 1 and 3 months after enrolment. Primary outcome categories were full recovery (no core symptoms of delirium), partial recovery (presence of one or more core symptoms but fewer symptoms than at enrolment), no recovery (same number of core symptoms as at enrolment) or death. Nominal logistic regression was used to compare the recovery status of patients with SSD or delirium.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Twenty-eight patients with SSD were enrolled. At the first follow-up, the frequencies of full, partial and no recovery and death were 40%, 12%, 32% and 16%, respectively; at the second follow-up, the frequencies were 54%, 8%, 21% and 17%, respectively. The frequency of full recovery was much higher in patients with SSD than delirium.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Small study sample size notwithstanding, the majority (54%) of patients with SSD recovered fully, but a substantial proportion (29%) had a protracted course. It may be important to monitor the longer-term course of SSD and develop strategies to ensure full recovery in all patients.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, McGill University; and St Mary's Hospital Center, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.|St. Mary's Research Centre, St. Mary's Hospital Center, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
authors.forename: Martin G
authors.initials: MG
authors.lastname: Cole
authors.affiliation: Division of Geriatric Medicine, McGill University; and St. Mary's Hospital Center, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
authors.forename: Robert
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Bailey
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine, McGill University; and St. Mary's Hospital Center, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Bonnycastle
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology, Biostatistics and Occupational Health, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.|St. Mary's Research Centre, St. Mary's Hospital Center, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
authors.forename: Jane
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: McCusker
authors.affiliation: Division of Geriatric Medicine, McGill University; and St. Mary's Hospital Center, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
authors.forename: Shek
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Fung
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology, Biostatistics and Occupational Health, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.|St. Mary's Research Centre, St. Mary's Hospital Center, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
authors.forename: Antonio
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ciampi
authors.affiliation: St. Mary's Research Centre, St. Mary's Hospital Center, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
authors.forename: Eric
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Belzile
mesh_terms: D000203:Activities of Daily Living; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D010054:Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale; D003693:Delirium / Q000401:mortality / Q000628:therapy*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007297:Inpatients / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors
keywords: aged; hospital inpatients; recovery; subsyndromal delirium