Delirium and Length of Hospital Stay among Medical Inpatients in Jos University Teaching Hospital, North-Central Nigeria

Abstract

Delirium is a complex neuropsychiatric syndrome that is often associated with adverse outcomes including prolonged hospitalization. This study aims to determine the length of hospital stay among medically-ill patients with and without delirium who were admitted through the Accident and Emergency unit of the Jos University Teaching Hospital, in North-Central Nigeria. It was a cross-sectional study that employed a consecutive sampling technique to select 290 eligible subjects in a face-to-face interview, using a confusion assessment method to assess for delirium within 24 hours of admission. All the respondents were followed-up from the Accident and Emergency unit until discharge or death. The results showed that respondents with delirium rather than those without, were significantly more likely to stay longer in the hospital (P < 0.001). The significant factors associated with prolonged hospitalization among those with delirium include, current medications use, duration of illness before presentation and type of medical diagnosis (P < 0.001), (P < 0.001) and (P < 0.001) respectively. The results point to the importance of screening for delirium in medically-ill patients, with particular attention to patients with infectious and cerebrovascular diseases.