Hospital Delirium: Cognitive Decline After Hospitalization

In the expected course of treatment, people are hospitalized because they are ill. Then, barring a terminal condition, they are released because they are better. Once home, people recover further, and continue on with their lives as well as their original illness allows them to. Unfortunately, with elderly people, this best-case scenario doesn't always happen.  Cognitive Decline Following Hospitalization: Sometimes an older adult experiences a noticeable cognitive decline post-hospitalization. Families and caregivers are left wanting to know what happened and wondering if their loved one will ever be cognitively the same as they were before hospitalization. Each case is unique, but according to many studies, the cognitive functioning of some elders may not fully recover from the trauma. Why are some elders subject to returning home from a hospitalization cognitively worse? Experts are studying this problem with varying results, but many agree that there are multiple conditions at play that can result in an elderly person suffering cognitive decline after hospitalization. Although there is no conclusive evidence that a hospitalization can lead to dementia, the medical community calls the condition "hospital delirium,"  Continue reading on Agingcare to learn more about how hospitalization can lead to dementia symptoms like my dad suffered: Minding Our Elders: Caregivers Share Their Personal Stories.“I hold onto your book as a life preserver and am read...
Source: Minding Our Elders - Category: Geriatrics Authors: Source Type: blogs