Incidence of Delirium and Its Related Risk Factors Among Patients in Cardiac Intensive Care Unit

INTRODUCTION: The incidence of delirium in patients who underwent open-heart surgery can cause them to face many short- and long-term complications. Having comprehensive information on the incidence and risk factors of delirium in patients who underwent open-heart surgery is essential for preventive care. Owing to the lack of studies in this regard, this study was conducted with the aim of investigating the incidence of delirium and its associated risk factors among patients undergoing cardiac surgery in a cardiac intensive care unit.
METHODS: This is a cross-sectional descriptive study conducted in the cardiac surgery intensive care unit of Booali Sina Hospital in Qazvin, Iran in 2018. The study sample comprised 230 patients who underwent open-heart surgery. For data collection, a demographic checklist and the Neelon and Champagne Confusion Scale were used. Data collection started in the evening before cardiac surgery and continued every day until patients left the intensive care unit. Collected data were then analyzed using descriptive tests and a nonlinear logistic regression model by Statistical Package for the Social Sciences, version 23.
RESULTS: Of all the patients who participated in this study, 53.5% showed some degree of delirium; 17 patients (7.4%) showed symptoms of moderate-to-severe delirium, 16 patients (7%) showed symptoms of mild delirium, and 90 patients (39.1%) developed confusion. Among the variables studied in this study, older age, history of renal diseases, history of stroke, the use of intraoperative cardiopulmonary bypass, clamp time, postoperative fibrillation, and postoperative stroke significantly predicted delirium (P <.05).
DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION: More than half of the patients reported some degree of delirium. Therefore, it is necessary to take preventive measures into consideration in this regard.