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PubMedDate not supplied

'Correction' of serum calcium values for albumin biased in geriatric patients.

Determination of serum ionized calcium concentration (Cal) is more tedious as a screening method than measuring serum total calcium concentration (CaT) and is not widely practicable. Thus, in clinical practice and even in research, it is customary to 'correct' the serum total calcium concentration (CaT) for that of albumin (Alb) to estimate the 'true' calcemic status,i.e. Cal. However, owing to confounding factors that are incompletely understood at present, the 'corrected' result is imprecise. The hypothesis of the present study was that in geriatric hypoalbuminemia, it could even be biased due to confounding factors associated with aging and related to the Alb level itself. To test this hypothesis, CaT, Alb and Cal were measured in 558 consecutive geriatric in-patients with varying degrees of hypoalbuminemia. The lower the Alb level, the more strikingly the sensitivity of CaT for detecting low Cal was impaired by the correction. In geriatric hypoalbuminemia, the correction is not merely imprecise but even biased (inaccurate). The bias increases with the degree of hypoalbuminemia (i.e. with the need for correction) and leads to underdiagnosis of 'true' (ionic) hypocalcemia.

Journal Article↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Health visitor intervention to reduce days of unplanned hospital re-admission in patients recently discharged from geriatric wards: the results of a randomised controlled study.

A randomised controlled trial was conducted to assess whether a single intervention by a health visitor reduced the unplanned re-admission of elderly people discharged from geriatric wards. Two hundred and four consecutive discharges from geriatric wards were randomly allocated to receive either a single visit from the health visitor at 72 h in addition to normal follow-up services or to a control group receiving the normal follow-up services. The primary outcome measure was the unplanned re-admissions over the following 6 months. There were 40 cases and 43 control patients with unplanned re-admissions in the first 6 months. The total lengths of the unplanned re-admissions were 1237 days for cases and 1427 for controls, an average of 12.1 days for cases and 14.0 for controls (95% confidence interval -4.9 to 8.7 days, not significant). A visit by a health visitor to elderly patients after discharge from geriatric wards is unlikely to be of sufficient benefit to the patients for the service to be funded from a saving in unplanned re-admissions.

Clinical Trial↗
PubMed2004

Pharmacologic approaches to geriatric pain management.

UNLABELLED: This focused review highlights pharmacologic approaches to geriatric pain management. It is part of the study guide on geriatric rehabilitation in the Self-Directed Physiatric Education Program for practitioners and trainees in physical medicine and rehabilitation. This article specifically focuses on age-specific differences in pain assessment and use of medications for pain management in older adults. The common disorders leading to acute and chronic pain conditions in the older adult are also described. The article contains practical recommendations regarding use of acetaminophen, anti-inflammatories, opioids, antiepileptics, antidepressants, and topical counterirritant drugs for pain management in older adults. OVERALL ARTICLE OBJECTIVE: To summarize pharmacologic approaches to geriatric pain management.

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PubMed2004

Previous cognitive impairment and failure to thrive syndrome in patients who died in a geriatric convalescence hospitalization unit.

Cognitive impairment and depression are commonly associated with poor outcomes in geriatric patients. Both are part of the "failure to thrive syndrome" (FTS), that is a combined group of symptoms as a result from progressive functional, mental and nutritional impairment status in older patients. This paper was aimed at evaluating the presence of FTS in the patients who died in a geriatric convalescence unit (GCU) (intermediate care facility) and comparing the characteristics of patients with primary FTS (not associated with an evident identifiable disease) and secondary FTS (associated with an evident identifiable disease). Finally, we wanted to analyze if the presence of cognitive impairment before admission was associated with the type of FTS. We analyzed 78 patients retrospectively. The presence of the next three conditions was necessary to define the FTS: (i) Impaired functional status and malnutrition. (ii) Cognitive impairment and/or depression. (iii) Absence of improvement, after a specific geriatric intervention program during the hospitalization. Functional status for basic and instrumental activities of daily living (ADL and IADL) and the presence of symptoms cognitive impairment before admission were evaluated. Of the 78 analyzed patients, there were 30 (38.4%) with symptoms of FTS. Seventeen of them (56.6%) had a secondary FTS and 13 (43.3%) a primary one. This last group of patients had a significantly higher mean age (84.7 +/- 5.8 vs. 78.6 +/- 7.2; p < 0.02) and before admission they were significantly more dependent for ADL: 10 patients (76.9%) vs. 7 (41.0%) chi2 = 3.833, p < 0.05. A higher proportion of subjects with cognitive impairment before admission was found in the group of patients with primary FTS, than in those secondary FTS, although this difference did not reach statistical significance. Patients with primary FTS seem to be older and more dependent for ADL before admission, than those with secondary FTS.

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PubMed2004

The impact of cognitive impairment on the rehabilitation process in geriatrics.

A study has been carried out in our geriatric rehabilitation wards, to know better the role of cognitive dysfunction in treatment outcome and processing, mainly functional recovery and comorbidity. We analyzed 478 frail inpatients, 2/3 of them were females, aged 78.7 + 9.2 years, consecutively admitted to the unit. Assessment of cognitive function was performed by the mini mental state examination (MMSE), of functional status by Barthel index (BI), of co-morbidity by cumulative illness rating scale (CIRS) both at the admission and discharge for each patient, together with the usual clinical parameters and social outcome. More than one people in three lived alone and showed some communication problems; one in seven needed modifications in food preparation or nutritional system;more than one in five had pressure sore >/= 2 (EPUAP = European Pressure Ulcers Advisory Panel classification). The mean (+/- SD) levels of the admitted were: MMSE = 20 +/- 7.2; BI total score = 45.5 +/- 28.9; CIRS class = 4 +/- 2, CIRS severity score = 1.9 +/- 0.4. Of the patients, 74.5% were discharged to home. Mean functional gain was 20 points at BI: 65.6 +/-30.7; MMSE improved to 21.6 +/- 7.1 (p = 0.00005 for both comparisons, by Wilcoxon test).MMSE was positively correlated to BI (r = 0.6, p = 0.0005) and negatively correlated (p =0.0005) to CIRS comorbidity (r = -0.33) and severity (r = -0.26), and to age (r = -0.38, p =0.0005) both at admission and at discharge. MMSE at admission was correlated neither to functional gain, nor to improvement of clinical indicators, nor to measures of functional and clinical efficiency. MMSE at discharge showed similar results. In a stepwise multiple correlation analysis, taking the gain in BI as the dependent variable, while BI, serum albumin level, MMSE, CIRS severity and comorbidity indexes at admission as independent variables, MMSE together with BI admission total score and CIRS severity index retained a strong association with functional gain, whilst admission serum albumin levels and CIRSindex lost it. Consistently with some literary data, we showed the actual possibility of functional and clinical gains for people cared in a geriatric rehabilitation ward, all through a wide range of MMSE score, including subnormal scores. Poor cognitive status bears heavily on frailty, but does not hamper the outcomes of genuine rehabilitative efforts in geriatrics.

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PubMed2004

Homocysteine and disability in hospitalized geriatric patients.

Elevated total homocysteine (tHcy) concentrations have been found to be associated with cardiovascular disease and dementia in old age. The present study was performed to identify the prevalence of hyperhomocysteinemia (HHcy) and to analyze the association between tHcy concentration and sociodemographic characteristics, nutritional parameters, and cognitive and functional status in this sample of hospitalized geriatric patients. A total of 214 patients (77% females) 65+ years old admitted into an acute care geriatric ward of an internal medical department in the Northern Italy were studied. tHcy concentration was measured using a high-performance liquid chromatography with fluorescence detection (HPLC-F). Information about nutrition (body mass index [BMI], serum albumin, cholesterol, and transferrin) was collected on admission. Functional status was investigated with the Basic Activities of Daily Living scale (ADL) and the Instrumental Activities of Daily Living scale (IADL); cognitive and affective status were assessed by the Mini-Mental State Evaluation (MMSE) and the Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS). The mean tHcy concentration was 18.4 +/- 13.1 micromol/L; 74.2% of males and 68.9% of females had HHcy (> 12 micromol/L). Sixty-four percent of patients with normal serum vitamin B12 and folate concentrations had HHcy. Elevated tHcy concentrations were associated with older age, male gender, increasing serum creatinine, lower MMSE score, and disability. The mean tHcy concentration depended on the occurrence of different diseases. Patients affected by atherosclerotic diseases, such as ischemic heart diseases, cerebrovascular diseases, and dementia had higher mean tHcy concentration than those without diagnosed vascular diseases. In multivariate analysis, vitamin B12, folate, serum albumin, creatinine, and disability emerged as factors associated with tHcy, adjusted for age, gender, education, MMSE score, and atherosclerotic diseases. Our results suggest that the prevalence of HHcy in hospitalized patients is very high, even in subjects with normal cobalamin and folate concentrations. High Hcy concentration can be associated with functional impairment.

Activities of Daily Living↗
PubMed2004

[Descriptive study of bacteremia in a geriatric hospital].

OBJECTIVES: To describe clinical features, microbiologic characteristics and outcome of bacteremia in the elderly patients hospitalized in a geriatric hospital. PATIENTS AND METHODS: All episodes of bacteremia diagnosed from January 1(st) to December 31(st) 1998 were analysed, excluding false-positive cases due to skin contamination. The hospital comprises 1084 geriatric beds distributed as 111 in acute care (ACF), 333 in rehabilitation and intermediate-care (RICF), and 516 in long-term-care facilities (LTCF). RESULTS: Sixty-six episodes of bacteremia were observed in 65 patients. Among them 59 (89%) were nosocomial bacteremia distributed as 20 in ACF, 29 in RICF and 10 in LTCF (rates of 0.6, 0.35, and 0.05 episodes per 1000 patient-days, respectively.). Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus were the main bacterial species involved in 31% and 28% of the cases, respectively. E. coli strains were 50% resistant to amoxicillin and 41% resistant to co-amoxiclav, and 68% of S. aureus strains were resistant to methicillin. Portals of entry were urinary tract (44%), respiratory tract (14%), digestive tract (11%), and soft tissue (8%). The same bacterial strain as in bacteremia was isolated from a peripheric site in 30 cases (47%), most of them being urines. For 15% cases, portal of entry cannot be determined. Mortality associated to nosocomial bacteremia was 25%, and death was significantly associated to MRSA, urinary or intravascular devices, chronic wounds and inappropriate antibiotic prescription. CONCLUSION: In geriatric hospitals, bacteremia are mainly nosocomial cases. Prevention should focus on indwelling devices and antibiotic resistance.

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PubMed2006

Long-term outcomes in chronically hospitalized geriatric patients with schizophrenia: retrospective comparison of first generation and second generation antipsychotics.

INTRODUCTION: Some groups have reported the longitudinal course of elderly poor outcome schizophrenic patients to be characterized by progressive decline in cognitive functions and functional capacity. Although many of these patients experience minimal reduction of psychotic symptoms, there may be beneficial effects of antipsychotic treatments on cognitive functions and functional capacity. METHODS: This naturalistic study compared the longitudinal course of psychotic symptoms, cognitive functions and functional impairment in geriatric schizophrenic patients treated with first generation (N=97) or second generation (N=78) antipsychotic medications. Mixed effects linear regression analyses were used to examine the effects of treatment (first generation vs. second generation antipsychotic), time and treatment x time. RESULTS: Cognitive functions (Mini Mental State Examination time effect estimate=-.41, p<.001; ADAS-L Cog time effect estimate=.64, p<.001) and self-care skills (ADAS-L Self-Care time effect estimate=.65, p<.001) declined over time for the subject group as a whole and this decline was not modified by treatment with second generation antipsychotics relative to first generation antipsychotics. Similarly, second generation antipsychotic treatment produced no effect on the progressive worsening of negative symptom over time. CONCLUSION: This long-term naturalistic study of poor outcome geriatric patients with schizophrenia did not find atypical antipsychotics to produce any differential protective effect relative to typical antipsychotics on the long-term manifestations of symptoms, cognition and self-care in poor outcome geriatric schizophrenic patients.

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PubMed2003

Subcortical lesion severity and orbitofrontal cortex volume in geriatric depression.

Previous studies have shown a reduction of orbital frontal cortex volume and an increase in magnetic resonance imaging signal hyperintensities in geriatric depression. We aimed to assess the relationship between subcortical gray- and deep white-matter lesions and orbital frontal cortex volume in elderly depressives and controls. The study included 41 elderly depressed patients and 41 age-matched control subjects. The orbital frontal cortex volume was measured in both hemispheres using a standardized MRI procedure. Signal hyperintensities were rated on (T2)-weighted MRI with qualitative lesion analyses performed according to an established hyperintensity classification system. After controlling for total cerebral hemisphere, age and sex, the geriatric depressed subjects had significant reduction in orbital frontal cortex volume and compared with the control group. Multiple linear regression modeling indicated that reduced orbital frontal cortex volumes were significantly associated with increased subcortical gray-matter lesions. Our study confirmed the reduction of OFC volume in geriatric depressed subjects. We also suggest that subcortical lesions may decrease OFC volume. Further studies are needed to understand how subcortical lesions may be related to OFC volume changes.

Aged↗
PubMed1985

Vitamin B12 (cobalamin) and folate blood levels in geriatric reference group as measured by two kits.

For serum vitamin B12 levels there was little apparent difference between a geriatric healthy reference group and a hospitalized group for the total population studied; however, the hospitalized males did have an increased prevalence of values less than normal range. The frequency distribution for both sexes of the geriatric reference group gave lower range limits than manufacturer's normal range. (68-632 vs 133-708 pmol/L for Becton Dickinson, and 125-609 vs 179-930 pmol/L for Bio-Rad, using 95% non-parametric limits). For folate there was an increased incidence in values of less than normal in the hospitalized group versus the geriatric reference group, but there was no difference in the ranges calculated for the latter compared to either manufacturer's normal range derived from a younger population. Comparison of results by two manufacturers' kit methods confirmed Bio-Rad's claim to increased low-end sensitivity of standard curve in range of clinical interest.

Age Factors↗
PubMed1988

Simple versus multichannel cystometry in the evaluation of bladder function in an incontinent geriatric population.

Bladder capacity and stability were determined among 171 incontinent geriatric patients (mean age 80 years) with 2 techniques: a simple procedure for cystometry involving incremental bladder filling by gravity and a continuous water filling multichannel cystometrogram. Bladder capacities measured by both methods in 164 patients were correlated significantly by simple linear regression (r equals 0.75, p equals 0.0001) and they were not significantly different by paired t tests (t equals 1.20, p equals 0.23). Of the patients 110 (64 per cent) had detrusor motor instability or hyperreflexia on the multichannel cystometrogram, and simple cystometry had a sensitivity of 75 per cent, specificity of 79 per cent and positive predictive value of 85 per cent for this finding. The simple procedure was practical, well tolerated and helped to provide information for management decisions that would have been difficult to obtain from many of these geriatric patients without a formal and more complex urodynamic evaluation. When performed with other simple tests of lower urinary tract function and interpreted in conjunction with a few straightforward clinical criteria, simple cystometry can be helpful to assess bladder function among incontinent geriatric patients in settings in which formal urodynamics are either unavailable or impractical.

Aged↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Mineral metabolism in healthy geriatric dogs.

To study mineral metabolism in geriatric dogs, parathyroid hormone, calcitriol, ionised calcium, phosphorus, blood urea nitrogen and creatinine were evaluated in 35 geriatric dogs (> 10 years) and in 20 young adult dogs (2-5 years). Parathyroid hormone levels were within the normal range in both groups, but values (mean +/- SEM) were greater in the old dogs (34.8 +/- 3.6 vs 21.2 +/- 2.3 pg ml(-1), P=0.005). Calcitriol and ionised calcium were similar in the two groups, and the values for both parameters were within the normal reference range. Plasma phosphorus levels were in the normal range in both groups but tended to be greater in the older dogs (P=0.09). While blood urea nitrogen was similar in the two groups, creatinine levels (mean +/- SEM) were higher in the young dogs (82.2 +/- 3.5 vs 101.7 +/- 4.4 micromol litre(-1)). Even when the dogs were matched for weight, plasma creatinine concentration was still greater in the younger dogs. In conclusion, an increase in parathyroid hormone without changes in calcium, phosphorus and calcitriol has been identified in geriatric dogs.

Aging↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Changes in psychiatric diagnoses from admission to discharge: review of the charts of 159 patients consecutively admitted to a geriatric psychiatry inpatient unit.

The diagnosis of psychopathology among geriatric acute inpatients requires comprehensive evaluation. To our knowledge, no recently published papers in the geriatric psychiatry literature have systematically examined diagnostic changes during single admissions. We reviewed the charts of 159 patients consecutively admitted to an acute geriatric psychiatry unit over 18 months. We recorded admission diagnoses from initial treatment plans, and discharge diagnoses from discharge summaries. Mean patient age was 80 years and average length of stay was 17 days. The most common primary diagnoses were psychotic and depressive disorders. The most common secondary diagnoses were dementias and depressive disorders. Primary diagnoses changed from admission to discharge in 31 patients (20%), and secondary diagnoses changed in 76 patients (48%). There was a significant change involving the diagnosis of dementia, but not that of depressive or psychotic disorders. A large proportion of inpatients had their diagnoses altered, especially those involving dementias, during hospitalization. Inpatient admission may be valuable for clarifying the diagnoses of elderly psychiatric patients.

Aged↗
PubMed1998

Recovery and relapse in geriatric depression after treatment with antidepressants and ECT in a medical-psychiatric population.

The objective of this naturalistic, longitudinal treatment outcome study was to determine relapse rates in geriatric depression following treatment with antidepressants and electroconvulsive therapy in a medical-psychiatric population. Thirty-nine elderly patients (average age 71 years) with unipolar major depression were treated with either antidepressants (AD) or, if resistant to AD treatment, ECT followed by maintenance antidepressants. Patients were monitored over 18 months, and relapse rates were closely determined using the Longitudinal Interval Follow-up Evaluation (LIFE) and the 21-item Hamilton Depression Rating Scale. Although 90% of patients recovered from their index episode of depression, relapse rates were approximately 29%. These results indicate that in spite of high chances of recovery from geriatric depression, intensive psychopharmacologic and psychotherapeutic strategies are needed to decrease relapse rates in geriatric depression.

Aged↗
PubMedDate not supplied

The prevalence of eye disease in nursing home and non-nursing home geriatric populations.

The objective of this study was to determine whether rates of eye disease among the elderly are higher for residents of nursing homes than for persons who reside elsewhere. Articles reporting the prevalence of eye disease in geriatric populations (classified as nursing home or non-nursing home) were identified through a Medline search and a search of articles' bibliographies. Identified articles were reviewed, and the relevant data compared with prevalence rates obtained from 738 residents of two nursing homes in New York City. Each of the nursing home residents received an ocular examination upon admission that determined the presence or absence of four varieties of eye disease-i.e. cataracts, age-related macular degeneration, glaucoma, and diabetic retinopathy. Demographic data were obtained through chart review. Results indicate that prevalence rates of eye disease found in geriatric nursing home populations are generally higher than those found in other geriatric populations. With the exception of the rates for diabetic retinopathy, the rates found in the combined nursing home population sampled in this study were much higher than those reported in any previous study. It is concluded that eye disease is a more serious problem for elderly residents of nursing homes than for the elderly who reside in the community. Possible reasons for this are discussed.

Journal Article↗
PubMed1989

A geriatric program in practice.

The geriatric patient represents an underutilized resource for the small animal practitioner. Thorough examination of the pet annually in detail allows detecting problems before they are too advanced. By using the systems approach to patient evaluation, one is better able to detect diseases and proceed with techniques to diagnose them. The use of in-house hematology and serum chemistry equipment benefits the pet and owner through rapid return of information and provides an added source of revenue for the practitioner. Developing and maintaining a system to reevaluate the geriatric patient is one of the most important aspects of a geriatric practice. Reminding clients that you care about their pet through routine scheduled evaluations develops loyal clients, which in turn generates additional hospital income.

Aging↗
PubMed1997

Immunologic response to tetanus toxoid in geriatric patients.

STUDY OBJECTIVE: Tetanus antibody levels have been shown to be inadequate in 50% of patients older than 65 years. Although immunization recommendations have been made for this age group, the efficacy of this intervention has not been well documented. We sought to determine the difference in tetanus antibody levels after the administration of one tetanus toxoid immunization to geriatric patients without adequate titers. METHODS: Thirty-five patients older than 65 years at a large urban comprehensive care geriatric center who were documented to have inadequate tetanus antibody titers were each given one tetanus toxoid immunization. Repeat titers were obtained at least 2 months after the immunization with the use of enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (Bindazyme kit; the Binding Site Corporation, Birmingham, England). We considered tetanus antibody levels greater than .17 IU/mL protective. RESULTS: The mean age was 79.4 years; 30 of 35 (86%) were female. Repeat tetanus antibody titers were obtained an average of 123 days (range, 63 to 204 days) after immunization with tetanus toxoid. The mean preimmunization antibody titer was .1 IU/mL (range, .04 to .16 IU/mL). After immunization, antibody titers increased a mean of .61 IU/mL (range, -.01 to 2.23 IU/mL; 95% confidence interval, .35 to .87 IU/mL). Thirty of the 35 patients who received a single injection of tetanus toxoid (86%) developed protective titers. We found no relationship between seroconversion and age, sex, or medical history; nor did we find a relationship between antibody level and time elapsed since immunization when repeat titers were obtained. CONCLUSION: Administration of one tetanus toxoid injection affords protective immunity in many geriatric patients.

Aged↗
PubMed2000

Palliative care in chronic psycho-geriatrics: a case-study.

In this case-study the relevance of psycho-social interventions for providing palliative care in the terminal phase of life of psycho-geriatric patients with functional-psychiatric co-pathology is described. The know-how, interventions and facilities such as available in a reactivation unit in a 'psychiatric-skilled' Dutch nursing home, were highly relevant to tune palliative care to the needs and abilities of the patient. The application of the four main-dimensions of the method of Dynamic System Analysis (particularly Cognitive functions, Psychological functions, Social context and Biology) can stimulate professionals to use an integral perspective both to the psycho-social needs of terminal psycho-geriatric patients and their relatives and to the biological aspects. To establish the value of the DSA method for providing palliative care to psycho-geriatric patients with functional-psychiatric co-pathology scientific research is recommended to determine the prognostic profile of patients who benefit most from an actual palliative care program.

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