Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39541327›Full record

ArticlePloS one2024

The effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on delirium incidence in Ontario long-term care homes: A retrospective cohort study.

Lydia Kennedy, John P Hirdes, George Heckman, Samuel D Searle, Caitlin McArthur

Abstract read
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Article in PloS one, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

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Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

5 authors.

Lydia KennedyDepartment of Medicine, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.
John P HirdesSchool of Public Health Sciences, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, Ontario, Canada.
George HeckmanSchool of Public Health Sciences, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, Ontario, Canada.
Samuel D SearleDepartment of Medicine, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.
Caitlin McArthurDepartment of Physiotherapy, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.ORCID 0000-0001-9985-2796

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

objectivesTo describe delirium incidence before and during the COVID-19 pandemic and examine factors associated with delirium incidence in the long-term care setting.

methodsWe conducted a retrospective cohort study of Ontario long-term care residents without severe cognitive impairment or baseline delirium with an assessment between February 1, 2019, and March 31, 2021. Data were collected from the interRAI Minimum Data Set (MDS) 2.0. The outcome of interest was delirium development. Selected independent variables were entered into univariate longitudinal generalized estimating equations, followed by multivariate analysis. Odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) are reported.

resultsA total of 63,913 residents were included within the comparison sample from February 2019 to February 2020. The pandemic sample consisted of 54,867 residents from March 2020 to March 2021. Incidence of delirium in the comparison sample was 3.4% (2158 residents) compared to 3.2% (1746 residents) in the pandemic sample (P = 0.06). Residents who were older, cognitively impaired, and increasingly frail had greater odds of developing delirium. Increased odds were associated with a diagnosis of bipolar disorder (OR 1.27, 95% CI 1.07-1.51) and anxiolytic use (OR 1.12, 95% CI 1.01-1.25). Residents who were newly admitted (OR 0.65, 95% CI 0.60-0.71) and those dependent for activities of daily living (OR 0.46, 95% CI 0.33-0.64) had lower odds of delirium development. CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS: The incidence of delirium did not differ between the year prior to and the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, indicating that preventative interventions employed by long-term care homes may have been effective. Long-term care residents who are older, frail, cognitively impaired, or had unstable health would benefit from targeted interventions to prevent delirium. Newly admitted residents or those dependent in activities of daily living had lower odds of developing delirium, which could indicate under detection in these groups.

Indexed as

COVID-19DeliriumLong-Term CareAgedAged, 80 and overFemaleHumansIncidenceMaleNursing HomesOntarioPandemicsRetrospective StudiesRisk FactorsSARS-CoV-2

Identifiers

PMID39541327
PMCPMC11563459

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.