OLDER ADULT: DELIRIUM, DEMENTIA, AND AMNESTIC
DISORDERS | GUARANTEED SUCCESS STARTS HERE!
LEARN, PRACTICE & EXCEL!
Describe delirium Answer: Characterized by disturbance of consciousness and change in
cognition
Develops rapidly over a short period
With Delirium what do you first want to check for Answer: UTI
Symptoms of delirium Answer: -Difficulty sustaining/shifting attention
-Extreme distractibility
-Disorganized thinking
-Rambling, irrelevant, pressured, and incoherent speech
-Impaired reasoning ability
-Impaired goal-directed behavior
-Disorientation to time & place
-Recent memory impaired
-Misperceptions about the environment, including illusions & hallucinations
Delirium Symptoms: LOC symptoms Answer: Interruption of sleep-wake cycle
Delirium Symptoms: Psychomotor activity fluctuates (4) Answer: Agitation
Purposeless movements
Vegetative state
Emotional lability
Delirium Symptoms: Autonomic manifestations (5) Answer: Tachycardia
Sweating
Flushed face
Dilated pupils
↑BP
APPHIA – Crafted with Care and Precision for Academic Excellence.
1
, Describe Delirium (4) Answer: Usually abrupt onset
Slower onset if underlying etiology R/T systemic illness/metabolic imbalance
Duration usually brief
Subsides completely when underlying cause is corrected
Delirium Predisposing Factors Answer: General medical condition
Substance-induced
Substance-intoxication
Substance-withdrawal
Multiple etiologies
Describe Dementia Answer: Loss of previous levels of functioning in alert state
-Cognitive
-Executive
-Memory
What is the most common dementia Answer: Alzheimer's disease
Affects
-5% of people ages 71 to 79
-24% of people ages 80 to 89
-37% of people ages 90 and older
Describe Primary dementias Answer: Dementia is the major sign of organic brain disease
Not directly R/T any other organic illness
Describe Secondary dementias Answer: Caused by or R/t another disease or condition
Examples
-HIV
-Cerebral trauma
Dementia Symptoms Answer: Impairment of
-Abstract thinking
-Judgment
-Impulse control
APPHIA – Crafted with Care and Precision for Academic Excellence.
2
DISORDERS | GUARANTEED SUCCESS STARTS HERE!
LEARN, PRACTICE & EXCEL!
Describe delirium Answer: Characterized by disturbance of consciousness and change in
cognition
Develops rapidly over a short period
With Delirium what do you first want to check for Answer: UTI
Symptoms of delirium Answer: -Difficulty sustaining/shifting attention
-Extreme distractibility
-Disorganized thinking
-Rambling, irrelevant, pressured, and incoherent speech
-Impaired reasoning ability
-Impaired goal-directed behavior
-Disorientation to time & place
-Recent memory impaired
-Misperceptions about the environment, including illusions & hallucinations
Delirium Symptoms: LOC symptoms Answer: Interruption of sleep-wake cycle
Delirium Symptoms: Psychomotor activity fluctuates (4) Answer: Agitation
Purposeless movements
Vegetative state
Emotional lability
Delirium Symptoms: Autonomic manifestations (5) Answer: Tachycardia
Sweating
Flushed face
Dilated pupils
↑BP
APPHIA – Crafted with Care and Precision for Academic Excellence.
1
, Describe Delirium (4) Answer: Usually abrupt onset
Slower onset if underlying etiology R/T systemic illness/metabolic imbalance
Duration usually brief
Subsides completely when underlying cause is corrected
Delirium Predisposing Factors Answer: General medical condition
Substance-induced
Substance-intoxication
Substance-withdrawal
Multiple etiologies
Describe Dementia Answer: Loss of previous levels of functioning in alert state
-Cognitive
-Executive
-Memory
What is the most common dementia Answer: Alzheimer's disease
Affects
-5% of people ages 71 to 79
-24% of people ages 80 to 89
-37% of people ages 90 and older
Describe Primary dementias Answer: Dementia is the major sign of organic brain disease
Not directly R/T any other organic illness
Describe Secondary dementias Answer: Caused by or R/t another disease or condition
Examples
-HIV
-Cerebral trauma
Dementia Symptoms Answer: Impairment of
-Abstract thinking
-Judgment
-Impulse control
APPHIA – Crafted with Care and Precision for Academic Excellence.
2
