ArticleAge and ageing2026
Frequent in dementia, deadliest without it: delirium and mortality in hospitalised older adults.
Article in Age and ageing, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.
What it found
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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.
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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.
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Who cites it
2 citing papers in PubMed.
- Who Is Delirium Worse For?Journal of the American Geriatrics Society · 2026Article
- Delirium: more than a marker of baseline vulnerability.Age and ageing · 2026Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
7 authors.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundDelirium is common in hospitalised older adults and is associated with mortality. Whether this prognostic association varies by baseline cognition is uncertain. We evaluated the association between delirium and 90-day mortality and whether baseline cognitive status modified this relationship.
methodsWe conducted a prospective, multicentre cohort study of adults aged ≥65 years admitted to 43 hospitals in five countries (Brazil, Angola, Chile, Colombia and Portugal; June 2022-December 2023). Delirium was assessed using the Confusion Assessment Method; cognitive status was measured using an informant-based Clinical Dementia Rating (CDR). Mortality within 90 days of admission was ascertained from hospital records, structured telephone follow-up by blinded assessors and registry linkage. We used mixed-effects survival models with random intercepts (state/province and study centre) and sequential adjustment for sociodemographic, clinical and hospital-related factors. Effect modification by CDR was examined with stratified analyses.
resultsAmong 2556 patients (mean age 79 ± 9 years; 56% women), delirium occurred in 957 (37%). Delirium frequency rose with worsening cognition (CDR 0: 16%; CDR 0.5: 27%; CDR 1: 59%; CDR 2-3: 77%; P < .001). Delirium was associated with higher 90-day mortality (adjusted HR = 3.45; 95% CI = 2.83-4.20). The relative association with mortality was greatest in no dementia and attenuated in moderate-severe dementia. At 90 days, cumulative mortality was 54% with delirium vs. 15% without in CDR 0 (HR = 4.40; 95% CI = 3.15-6.16) and 36% vs. 17% in CDR 2-3 (HR = 2.22; 95% CI = 1.34-3.66). Patients with delirium also experienced more in-hospital complications (nosocomial infection, functional decline and prolonged stay).
conclusionsAlthough delirium was more frequent among patients with dementia, its relative association with 90-day mortality was strongest in those with no baseline dementia. The results provide a strong rationale for intervention trials to determine whether delirium prevention and management strategies can reduce mortality, particularly among patients without known dementia.
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