Post-Operative Delirium in Elderly People Diagnostic and Management Issues of Post-Operative Delirium in Elderly People

Hippocrates a Greek physician commonly known as the Father of Medicine was the first to describe delirium, 'phrenitis', differencing it from other disorders such as melancholia and mania. Since then, it still remains a clinical problem which is not yet resolved. Postoperative delirium is a commonmedical problem that occurs preferentially in surgical patients aged 65 years and older. It is a true medical emergency that requires immediate professional attention and treatment. Faced by health professionals and especially nurses it is often undetected, misdiagnosed, and under-treated as a complication by them during clinical care. Delaying diagnosis relates to increased mortality and morbidity and affects deleteriously the elderly patients outcome, predisposing higher postoperative complications, prolonged hospital stay, malnutrition, immobility or bed confinement, higher health care costs, possible transfers to nursing homes and there is even higher death rates within 30 days, 6 months and 1 year. There is a knowledge deficit of the predisposing and causative factors of postoperative delirium occurrence, evaluation and assessment of cognitive status and health professionals, especially nurses need to receive the necessary training and education to provide quality care for the elderly with postoperative delirium. As postoperative delirium is frequent in the geriatric patients, it is obvious that we are facing a new challenge to find the right combination for the management and treatment for optimal therapeutic outcomes.