ReviewEuropean geriatric medicine2025
The etiology of delirium in long-term care settings: a Lernaean Hydra.
Review in European geriatric medicine, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
1 citing paper in PubMed.
- Case Report: Neuropsychiatric instability in structurally compromised CNS Erdheim-Chester disease: a diagnostic and management challenge.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2026Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
3 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
purposeDelirium is a frequent and critical condition in long-term care (LTC) settings. The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) states that delirium requires three key elements: acute onset, fluctuating course, and disturbances in attention and awareness. As the Hydra, a mythological monster with multiple heads that doubles when cut down, delirium is multifactorial in nature. Understanding the multicomponents of delirium is decisive for effective prevention, early detection, and management.
methodThis paper aimed to outline etiologies of delirium in LTC settings. A comprehensive literature search was conducted using the Cochrane Database and MEDLINE to identify relevant studies on the etiology and diagnosis of delirium, particularly in LTC settings. Two geriatricians selected papers based on five criteria and one researcher extracted data. A narrative review was conducted to produce this article.
resultsThe results were organized and compared to known literature. The three Ps model of delirium was elaborated, consisting of predisposing, precipitating and perpetuating factors. A multicomponent model of delirium in LTC was developed, likened to the mythological multiheaded Hydra. Predisposing factors identified comprise dementia, mild cognitive impairment, and depressive symptoms. Precipitating factors include infections (urinary, cellulitis, respiratory), medication (antipsychotics, anticholinergics, benzodiazepines), pain, sensory loss or deprivation, environmental stressors, malnutrition, cardiovascular conditions (such as stroke and myocardial infarction), and dehydration.
conclusionThis work allowed the conceptualization of a model for delirium in LTC settings. More studies, as well as more comprehensive systematic reviews, might help to further develop and validate this model.
Indexed as
Identifiers
41236603What Socratic holds
Registered trials
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 Socratic graph.