Abstract

Delirium is a common neuropsychiatric disorder in the elderly. Delirium often has multifactorial etiologies and the condition emerges due to the interaction between the different predisposing and precipitating factors. If delirium is left untreated, it can lead to significantly higher rates of morbidity and mortality. Unfortunately, many cases of delirium in the elderly are missed or this condition is misdiagnosed as a depressive or a neurocognitive disorder. Emerging data indicates that a significant number of cases of delirium can be prevented. Evidence indicates that both non-pharmacological and pharmacological treatment methods have shown benefit in reducing the incidence of delirium, mitigating its severity, decreasing the duration of the episode and also shortening the length of hospital stay. In this review, we discuss the evidence based prevention and the management of delirium in the elderly.