Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40903409›Full record

ArticleAcute and critical care2025

The effects of restricted visitation on delirium incidence in the intensive care units of a tertiary hospital in South Korea.

Leerang Lim, Christine Kang, Minseob Kim, Jinwoo Lee, Hong Yeul Lee, Seung-Young Oh, Ho Geol Ryu, Hannah Lee

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Acute and critical care, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

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1citing papers in PubMed
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1 · What the graph read from it

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2 · The registry

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3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Review
4 · The record

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5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

8 authors.

Leerang LimDepartment of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine, Seoul National University Hospital, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
Christine KangDepartment of Critical Care Medicine, Seoul National University Hospital, Seoul, Korea.
Minseob KimDepartment of Critical Care Medicine, Seoul National University Hospital, Seoul, Korea.
Jinwoo LeeDepartment of Internal Medicine, Seoul National University Hospital, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
Hong Yeul LeeDepartment of Critical Care Medicine, Seoul National University Hospital, Seoul, Korea.
Seung-Young OhDepartment of Critical Care Medicine, Seoul National University Hospital, Seoul, Korea.
Ho Geol RyuDepartment of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine, Seoul National University Hospital, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
Hannah LeeDepartment of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine, Seoul National University Hospital, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundDelirium is a common but serious complication in critically ill patients. Family visitation has been shown to reduce delirium; however, during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, intensive care units (ICUs) restricted regular visitation to prevent the spread of infection. This study aimed to evaluate the association between visitation policies and incidence of delirium in the ICUs.

methodsThis was a retrospective before-and-after study conducted in medical and surgical ICUs at a tertiary hospital. Adult patients admitted to an ICU during one of two periods were included: before the COVID-19 pandemic (June 2017 to May 2019) with regular visitation and during the pandemic (June 2020 to May 2022) with prohibited visitation. Delirium was assessed using the Confusion Assessment Method for the ICU. The primary outcome was association between delirium incidence and visitation policy.

resultsTotals of 1,566 patients from the pre-COVID-19 period and 1,404 patients from the COVID-19 period were analyzed. The incidence of delirium was higher during the COVID-19 period (48.1% vs. 38.4%, P<0.001). After adjusting for relevant variables, the restricted visitation policy during COVID-19 remained a risk factor for delirium (odds ratio, 1.37; 95% CI, 1.13-1.65; P=0.001).

conclusionsComplete restriction of ICU visitations during the COVID-19 pandemic was associated with a significant increase in delirium incidence. These findings suggest the importance of visitation policies on patient outcomes and suggest the need for alternative strategies, such as video visitation, to mitigate the adverse effects of visitation restrictions during pandemics.

Indexed as

caregiversdeliriumintensive care unit

Identifiers

PMID40903409
PMCPMC12408450

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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.