Delirium poses a significant burden on our healthcare, with patients in the intensive care unit (ICU) at an increased risk for developing this disorder. In addition, the ICU environment poses unique challenges in the assessment of delirium. It is paramount that the healthcare provider has an understanding of delirium in ICU, and monitors for it vigilantly. There have been various scoring systems developed to assist in this regard. However, the most commonly used and validated tools for the assessment of delirium are the Confusion Assessment Method for the Intensive Care Unit (CAM-ICU) and the Intensive Care Delirium Screening Checklist (ICDSC). Biomarkers of delirium are emerging as tools to diagnose delirium, stratify severity, monitor progress, and predict outcomes, potentially changing the way we approach delirium in the future.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.