Author:
Meagher David J.,Moran Maria,Raju Bangaru,Gibbons Dympna,Donnelly Sinead,Saunders Jean,Trzepacz Paula T.
Abstract
BackgroundDelirium phenomenology is understudied.AimsTo investigate the relationship between cognitive and non-cognitive
delirium symptoms and test the primacy of inattention in delirium.MethodPeople with delirium (n=100) were assessed using the
Delirium Rating Scale-Revised-98(DRS-R98)and Cognitive Test for Delirium
(CTD).ResultsSleep-wake cycle abnormalities and inattention were most frequent, while
disorientation was the least frequent cognitive deficit. Patients with
psychosis had either perceptual disturbances or delusions but not both.
Neither delusions nor hallucinations were associated with cognitive
impairments. Inattention was associated with severity of other cognitive
disturbances but not with non-cognitive items. CTD comprehension
correlated most closely with non-cognitive features of delirium.ConclusionsDelirium phenomenology is consistent with broad dysfunction of higher
cortical centres, characterised in particular by inattention and
sleep-wake cycle disturbance. Attention and comprehension together are
the cognitive items that best account for the syndrome of delirium.
Psychosis in delirium differs from that in functional psychoses.
Publisher
Royal College of Psychiatrists
Subject
Psychiatry and Mental health
Cited by
216 articles.
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