Erratum to 'Feasibility of a two-part person-centred care initiative for people living with dementia in acute hospitals: A mixed method study' International Journal of Nursing Studies Advances, 3 (2021) Article Number: 100040.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1016/j.ijnsa.2021.100040.].

Consciousness and the rabbit holes of delirium.

Delirium is a common disorder in hospitalized older adults and the defining characteristic is a disturbance of consciousness. Unfortunately, there are currently no testable measures of consciousness as pertains to its disruption in delirium. Not surprisingly rates of recognition of delirium suffer. Arguably, a greater understanding of the quantum of consciousness may improve delirium diagnosis through better diagnostic tools. Candidate dimensions of consciousness derived from fields of psychology, psychiatry, and philosophy are discussed and relevance to delirium explored. Based upon existing literature in the field of consciousness we identify the pre-reflective state, experiential awareness, and functional networks as candidate sites that may be affected in delirium. Opportunities for clinical instrument development and how these tools can be tested are discussed. We conclude that consciousness content may not hold to a unitary measurement, but facets of its integrity that are impacted in delirium are open to further exploration. Disorders in pre-reflective status, experiential awareness, and functional networks may represent the measurable "rabbit holes" of consciousness disturbance.

Reconceptualizing delirium as a disorder of complex system failure.

Delirium is conceptually elusive and falls outside of conventional biomedical models. Positivist theoretical paradigms of single linear causality are therefore insufficient to provide mechanistic enlightenment. Delirium does, however, share parallels with features of failure within a complex system. Lessons from complex system theory provide important potential healthcare dividends with respect to delirium. The brain is complex and exhibits emergence, a feature of consciousness, which is crucially impacted in delirium. Volatility, non-linear relationships and multiple point failures are cardinal features of complex system failure, thence delirium. An alternative emphasis away from end of chain analysis and oversimplification of cause and an attempt to avoid introduction of new forms of failure in a responsive healthcare environment are lessons from complex system theory. Insights from complex systems provide potentially important mechanistic underpinnings and new lines of research enquiry for delirium. Not least, a fuller understanding of delirium from a complex system viewpoint may help transform management and outcomes in one of the biggest challenges of acute healthcare.

The prevalence and burden of behavioural and psychological symptoms of dementia in rural Tanzania.

OBJECTIVES: Behavioural and psychological symptoms (BPS) in dementia are common in high-income countries, but there are few data from sub-Saharan Africa. Our aim was to estimate the prevalence and pattern of BPS and associated caregiver distress in rural Tanzania. METHODS: Prevalent cases of dementia (aged 70 and over) were identified during a community-based door-to-door study in six rural villages in Tanzania. Following cognitive screening, a stratified sample (over-sampled for people with dementia) of cases underwent a detailed clinical assessment including the brief 12 item neuropsychiatric inventory (NPI-Q), which assesses BPS and associated caregiver distress over the preceding 30 days. RESULTS: Of 78 people with dementia, at least one current BPS was reported by 69 (88.4%), with 40 (51.3%) reporting 3 or more symptoms. In 172 people with no cognitive impairment, 110 (64.0%) reported at least one symptom and 48 (27.9%) reported 3 or more. In dementia cases, the most frequent symptoms reported were anxiety (47.4%), agitation/aggression (38.5%), night-time behavioural disturbance (34.6%), irritability (33.3%) and depression (33.3%). CONCLUSION: The frequency of BPS in dementia in this rural Tanzanian population is high and comparable to that reported in prevalence studies from high income countries. Symptoms were also common, although to a lesser degree, amongst cognitively intact subjects. BPS are likely to have a significant impact on quality of life for elderly persons and their carers in low-income settings. Low-cost interventions, such as community-based therapy and education, are needed.

Consensus and variations in opinions on delirium care: a survey of European delirium specialists.

BACKGROUND: There are still substantial uncertainties over best practice in delirium care. The European Delirium Association (EDA) conducted a survey of its members and other interested parties on various aspects of delirium care. METHODS: The invitation to participate in the online survey was distributed among the EDA membership. The survey covered assessment, treatment of hyperactive and hypoactive delirium, and organizational management. RESULTS: A total of 200 responses were collected (United Kingdom 28.6%, Netherlands 25.3%, Italy 15%, Switzerland 9.7%, Germany 7.1%, Spain 3.8%, Portugal 2.5%, Ireland 2.5%, Sweden 0.6%, Denmark 0.6%, Austria 0.6%, and others 3.2%). Most of the responders were doctors (80%), working in geriatrics (45%) or internal medicine (14%). Ninety-two per cent of the responders assessed patients for delirium daily. The most commonly used assessment tools were the Confusion Assessment Method (52%) and the Delirium Observation Screening Scale (30%). The first-line choice in the management of hyperactive delirium was a combination of non-pharmacological and pharmacological approaches (61%). Conversely, non-pharmacological management was the first-line choice in hypoactive delirium (67%). Delirium awareness (34%), knowledge (33%), and lack of education (13%) were the most commonly reported barriers to improving the detection of delirium. Interestingly, 63% of the responders referred patients after an episode of delirium to a follow-up clinic. CONCLUSIONS: This is the first systematic survey involving an international group of specialists in delirium. Several areas of lack of consensus were found. These results emphasise the importance of further research to improve care of this major unmet medical need.

Relationship between baseline white-matter changes and development of late-life depressive symptoms: 3-year results from the LADIS study.

BACKGROUND: Growing evidence suggests that cerebral white-matter changes and depressive symptoms are linked directly along the causal pathway. We investigated whether baseline severity of cerebral white-matter changes predict longer-term future depressive outcomes in a community sample of non-disabled older adults. METHOD: In the Leukoaraiosis and Disability in the Elderly (LADIS) study, a longitudinal multi-centre pan-European study, 639 older subjects underwent baseline structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and clinical assessments. Baseline severity of white-matter changes was quantified volumetrically. Depressive outcomes were assessed in terms of depressive episodes and depressive symptoms, as measured by the Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS). Subjects were clinically reassessed annually for up to 3 years. Regression models were constructed to determine whether baseline severity of white-matter changes predicted future depressive outcomes, after controlling for confounding factors. RESULTS: Baseline severity of white-matter changes independently predicted depressive symptoms at both 2 (p<0.001) and 3 years (p=0.015). Similarly, white-matter changes predicted incident depression (p=0.02). Over the study period the population became significantly more disabled (p<0.001). When regression models were adjusted to account for the influence of the prospective variable transition to disability, baseline severity of white-matter changes no longer predicted depressive symptoms at 3 years (p=0.09) or incident depression (p=0.08). CONCLUSIONS: Our results support the vascular depression hypothesis and strongly implicate white-matter changes in the pathogenesis of late-life depression. Furthermore, the findings indicate that, over time, part of the relationship between white-matter changes and depression may be mediated by loss of functional activity.

White matter changes and late-life depressive symptoms: longitudinal study.

BACKGROUND: Evidence from cross-sectional studies suggests a link between cerebral age-related white matter changes and depressive symptoms in older people, although the temporal association remains unclear. AIMS: To investigate age-related white matter changes on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) as an independent predictor of depressive symptoms at 1 year after controlling for known confounders. METHOD: In a pan-European multicentre study of 639 older adults without significant disability, MRI white matter changes and demographic and clinical variables, including cognitive scores, quality of life, disability and depressive symptoms, were assessed at baseline. Clinical assessments were repeated at 1 year. RESULTS: Using logistic regression analysis, severity of white matter changes was shown to independently and significantly predict depressive symptoms at 1 year after controlling for baseline depressive symptoms, quality of life and worsening disability (P<0.01). CONCLUSIONS: White matter changes pre-date and are associated with the development of depressive symptoms. This has implications for treatment and prevention of depression in later life.