Featured Study
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INCIDENCE AND CORRELATES OF DELIRIUM IN A WEST AFRICAN MENTAL HEALTH |
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This month’s featured study investigated the incidence and associated factors of delirium in patients presenting to a psychiatric clinic in Nigeria. Research data focusing on delirium in sub-Saharan Africa countries have been scarce, despite the relevance of the subject from a public health perspective. This paper reports a survey of 264 outpatients consecutively assessed for the presence of delirium using a standardized diagnostic scale. In this sample, 48 individuals (18.2%) fulfilled diagnostic criteria for delirium. No demographic variable was significantly associated to the presence or absence of delirium. With regard to clinical variables, duration of current symptoms, referral source, and the presence of comorbid physical illness were significantly associated with the presence of delirium – mostly due to infections, occurring in 52.1% of the cases. Nearly all patients with delirium were prescribed psychotropic medication (95.2%), and most attributed their symptoms to a spiritual cause. These data suggest that patients with delirium present more frequently to psychiatric services in less developed countries. Efforts are required to enhance the recognition and management of delirium and associated physical health problems in all settings in order to improve outcomes in low-resource areas. |
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Ola BA, Crabb J, Krishnadas R, Erinfolami AR, Olagunju A. Incidence and correlates of delirium in a West African mental health clinic. General Hospital Psychiatry. Available online 19 November 2009. DOI: 10.1016/j.genhosppsych.2009.10.005 |
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