Presenting symptoms of COVID-19 and clinical outcomes in hospitalised older adults.

BACKGROUND: In July 2020, a COVID-19 outbreak was recognised in the geriatric wards at a subacute campus of the Royal Melbourne Hospital affecting patients and staff. Patients were also admitted to this site after diagnosis in residential care. AIMS: To describe the early symptoms and the outcomes of COVID-19 in older adults. METHODS: Patients diagnosed with COVID-19 at the facility in July or August 2020 were identified and their medical records were examined to identify symptoms present before and after their diagnosis and to determine their outcomes. RESULTS: Overall, 106 patients were identified as having COVID-19, with median age of 84.3 years (range 41-104 years); 64 were diagnosed as hospital inpatients after a median length of stay of 49 days, 31 were transferred from residential aged care facilities with a known diagnosis and 11 were diagnosed after discharge. There were 95 patients included in an analysis of symptom type and timing onset. Overall, 61 (64.2%) were asymptomatic at the time of diagnosis of COVID-19, having been diagnosed through screening initiated on site. Of these, 88.6% developed symptoms of COVID-19 within 14 days. The most common initial symptom type was respiratory, but there was wide variation in presentation, including fever, gastrointestinal and neurological symptoms, many initially not recognised as being due to COVID-19. Of 104 patients, 32 died within 30 days of diagnosis. CONCLUSIONS: COVID-19 diagnosis is challenging due to the variance in symptoms. In the context of an outbreak, asymptomatic screening can identify affected patients early in the disease course.

Frailty indexes in perioperative and critical care: A systematic review.

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: Frail patients are increasingly presenting for both perioperative and intensive care, highlighting the need for simple, valid and scaleable frailty measurement. Frailty indexes comprehensively assess a range of deficits in health, and can incorporate routinely collected data. The purpose of this systematic review was to evaluate the effect of frailty indexes on surgical and intensive care risk stratification and patient outcomes (mortality, complications, length of stay, and discharge location). METHODS: A prospectively registered systematic review was performed. MEDLINE, EMBASE, and CINAHL were searched to identify studies enrolling adult surgical or intensive care patients which used a frailty index. Included studies were those published subsequent to 1990, of any study design, which utilised a frailty index consisting of ≥30 health deficits. Primary outcome was mortality; secondary outcomes were complications, length of stay (LOS) and discharge location. Study and frailty index quality were critically appraised by three independent reviewers, with findings narratively described. RESULTS: 2026 articles were screened, from which nine prospective and four retrospective cohort studies (enrolling 2539 patients) were included. Frailty prevalence ranged between 19-62%; frailty indexes identified patients at risk of increased death [mortality rates ranging between 1.9-73.1%; reported odds ratios (ORs) for death ranging between 1.76-3.09 for frail vs. non-frail patients], surgical complications (ORs = 1.67-4.4), increased LOS, and discharge to residential care (ORs = 1.9-3.64). The term "frailty index" was found to be applied to a number of alternative measurement scales. CONCLUSION: Frail patients are at significantly increased risk in critical illness and the perioperative period. Better standardisation of frailty indexes is recommended.

Are health assets associated with improved outcomes for hospitalised older adults? A systematic review.

OBJECTIVE: Health assets are protective factors that support health and wellbeing, rather than risk factors that are associated with disease. This concept was developed in the community setting. In hospitalised older adults, the dominant approach has been to identify risk factors, with little examination of health assets. The purpose of this systematic review was to determine whether, in hospitalised older people, individual health assets decrease the risk of post hospital mortality, functional decline, new need for residential care, readmission or longer length of stay. METHODS: MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL and PsycINFO were searched to identify studies examining outcomes for hospitalised older adults. Included studies examined at least one potential individual health asset, which was a psychosocial characteristic or health characteristic. Study quality was assessed, and findings are narratively described. RESULTS: Nine prospective cohort and two retrospective cohort studies were identified. subjective, functional and biological health assets were identified. Health assets were associated with decreased risk of post-hospital mortality, functional decline, new need for residential care and readmission. CONCLUSION: The complex interplay between health status and psychological and social factors is incompletely understood. Health assets are associated with improved outcomes for hospitalised older adults. The small number of studies suitable for inclusion indicates the need for further research in this area.

The clinical frailty scale predicts functional decline and mortality when used by junior medical staff: a prospective cohort study.

BACKGROUND: Increasing frailty is associated with risk of mortality and functional decline in hospitalized older adults, but there is no consensus on the best screening method for use by non-geriatricians. The objective of this study is to determine whether the clinical frailty scale (CFS) can be used to identify patient baseline frailty status in the acute general medical setting when used by junior medical staff using information obtained on routine clinical assessment. METHODS: This was a prospective cohort study in an acute general medical unit. All patients aged 65 and over admitted to a general medical unit during August and September 2013 were eligible for the study. CFS score at baseline was documented by a member of the treating medical team. Demographic information and outcomes were obtained from medical records. The primary outcomes were functional decline and death within three months. RESULTS: Frailty was assessed in 95 % of 179 eligible patients. 45 % of patients experienced functional decline and 11 % died within three months. 40 % of patients were classified as vulnerable/mildly frail, and 41 % were moderately to severely frail. When patients in residential care were excluded, increasing frailty was associated with functional decline (p = 0.011). Increasing frailty was associated with increasing mortality within three months (p = 0.012). CONCLUSIONS: A high proportion of eligible patients had the frailty measure completed, demonstrating the acceptability of the CFS to clinicians. Despite lack of training for medical staff, increasing frailty was correlated with functional decline and mortality supporting the validity of the CFS as a frailty screening tool for clinicians.

The Effects of Advance Care Planning Interventions on Nursing Home Residents: A Systematic Review.

BACKGROUND: Advance care planning (ACP) encompasses a process by which people may express and record their values and preferences for care and treatment should they lose the capacity to communicate them in the future. We believe the effects that ACP can have on the nursing home population is distinct from others and sought to gain insight into the outcomes of relevant studies on the topic. AIM: To identify the effects of ACP interventions on nursing home residents. DESIGN: Systematic review. METHODS: A comprehensive literature search was conducted using the following 4 electronic databases, Embase, Medline, PsychINFO, and CINAHL, with no limits on year or language. Gray literature search of relevant journals was also performed as was reviewing of the reference lists of all included articles. Inclusion criteria were randomized controlled trials, controlled trials, pre/post study design trials and prospective studies examining the effects of ACP on nursing home residents. A detailed narrative synthesis was compiled as the heterogeneous nature of the interventions and results precluded meta-analysis. RESULTS: The initial search yielded 4654 articles. Thirteen studies fitted inclusion criteria for analysis. The ACP interventions included (1) 5 studies evaluating educational programs; (2) 5 studies introducing or evaluating a new ACP form; (3) 2 studies introducing an ACP program with a palliative care initiative; and (4) 1 study observing the effect of do not resuscitate orders on medical treatments for respiratory infections. A range of effects of ACP was demonstrated in the study populations. Hospitalization was the most frequent outcome measure used across the included studies. Analysis found that in the nursing home population, ACP decreased hospitalization rates by 9%-26%. Of note, in the 2 studies that included mortality, the decrease in hospitalization was not associated with increased mortality. Place of death is another important effect of ACP. Analysis found significant increases in the number of residents dying in their nursing home by 29%-40%. Medical treatments being consistent with ones' wishes were increased with ACP although not to 100% compliance. Two studies showed a decrease in overall health costs. One study found an increase in community palliative care use but not in-patient hospice referrals. CONCLUSIONS: ACP has beneficial effects in the nursing home population. The types of ACP interventions vary, and it is difficult to identify superiority in effectiveness of one intervention over another. Outcome measures also vary considerably between studies although hospitalization, place of death, and actions being consistent with resident's wishes are by far the most common. Very few studies with high quality methodology have been undertaken in the area with a significant lack of randomized controlled trials. More robust studies, especially randomized controlled trials, are required to support the findings.