Digestive Diseases in Elderly and Factors Associated With Length of Stay in the Hepatology and Gastroenterology Unit of the Campus Teaching Hospital of Lome (Togo)

Abstract

BACKGROUND: The digestive pathologies are frequent in the elderly and often have a latent and atypical symptomatology. OBJECTIVE: To assess the epidemiological and evolutionary current data on digestive diseases in the elderly, and look for factors associated with length of hospital stay. METHODS: Retrospective study of 10 years, including patients aged 60 and over hospitalized for digestive diseases in the Gastroenterology Department of the Campus Teaching Hospital of Lome, Togo. RESULTS: Of 5933 hospitalized patients, there were 1054 patients (17.8%) aged 60 years and over with a digestive pathology (526 men and 528 women). The average age was 69.5 years ±7.9 ranging from 60 to 105 years. The average length of hospital stay was 7.45 days ±6.2 ranging from 1 to 44 days. HIV prevalence was 2.4%. In order of decreasing frequency, there were hepatobiliary pathologies (54.3%) with a predominance of cirrhosis and liver cancer, eso-gastroduodenal pathologies (23.1%) with predominance of ulcers, gastric cancer and esophageal cancer, intestinal pathologies (8.7%) with a predominance of food poisoning, pancreatic pathologies (4.2%) with a predominance of pancreatic cancer and peritoneal pathologies (1.4%). Gastric cancer was the second digestive cancer found after liver cancer. Pancreatic head cancer was the second disease after gastric cancer which need a transfer in a surgical ward (P=0.031). There were 204 deaths (19.4%). The longest duration of hospitalization was due to gastric cancer (9.16 days). CONCLUSION: Hepatobiliary diseases were the most frequent and associated with a high death rate and a long hospital stay.

Digestive diseases of cattle diagnosed at the “Clínica de Bovinos de Garanhuns”-UFRPE: retrospective study and influence of seasonality

“…Studies based on data collection from hospital archives are considered an important epidemiological tool since they allow systematic knowledge of the clinical, laboratorial, and epidemiological characteristics of the various diseases that affect different animal species, as well as humans (Gopal et al 2015, Bezdekova & Janalik 2016, Eshetu et al 2018, Lawson-Ananissoh et al 2018, Kachhawa et al 2019. In addition, this type of study enables the establishment of the occurrence of a certain disease according to characteristics related to the animal, such as breed, sex, and age group, as well as according to demographic and seasonal distribution (Thrusfield 2005).…”

High Rates of Mortality in Geriatric Patients Admitted for Inflammatory Bowel Disease Management

“…Although there is growing literature evaluating inpatient cost and quality outcomes among the elderly, the data on geriatric inpatient outcomes in the setting of gastrointestinal (GI) illness is more limited 6. Furthermore, it is well established that inpatient hospitalizations for symptomatic worsening and complications from inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) represent a third of the total cost of care7 and have been found to be independently associated with poor disease outcomes including higher rates of health care utilization and increased 5-year mortality 8–10.…”

“…4,5 Although there is growing literature evaluating inpatient cost and quality outcomes among the elderly, the data on geriatric inpatient outcomes in the setting of gastrointestinal (GI) illness is more limited. 6 Furthermore, it is well established that inpatient hospitalizations for symptomatic worsening and complications from inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) represent a third of the total cost of care 7 and have been found to be independently associated with poor disease outcomes including higher rates of health care utilization and increased 5-year mortality. [8][9][10] Multiple patient characteristics have already been found to be associated with adverse inpatient outcomes in hospitalizations related to IBD, including poor nutritional status, anemia, more extensive disease, opiate requirement, lower socioeconomic status, and development of associated infectious and thrombotic complications.…”