Occurrence of Delirium and Length of Stay of Patients in the Intensive Care Unit

Introduction: The delirium has received little attention from professionals working in the intensive care unit, mainly due to the fact that this is, rarely, the primary reason for patient admission. Given the high prevalence of delirium in an intensive care environment, the current guidelines recommend the daily assessment of delirium and a multidisciplinary approach. Delirium is a frequent and severe form of acute brain dysfunction, as well as an important source of concern in critical care. Objective: To assess the occurrence of delirium and time of stay in the intensive care unit. Method: This is a quantitative, descriptive study, with a cross-sectional design, which was carried out in a university hospital located in the interior of the State of Rio de Janeiro. The sample consisted of 89 patients, of both sexes, aged between 24 and 92 years. The RASS and CAM-ICU scales were used to assess delirium. The data were collected every 12 hours, for 3 months, 7 days a week and in an uninterrupted manner. Results: Were evaluated 89 patients, of which 16 were excluded according to the scale criteria, leaving 73 patients. After evaluation, 22 patients were diagnosed with delirium and 51 patients without delirium. Of the patients who presented delirium, 13 deaths and 9 had high to the nursery. Of the patients who did not have delirium, 40 had high to the nursery and 11 deaths. Patients with delirium had an average hospital stay of 23.25 days and patients who did not have delirium had an average of 4.5 days hospitalization. Conclusion: We can infer that the longer the patient spends in the intensive care unit, the greater the chance of delirium occurring. Therefore, preventive and interventional measures are necessary to decrease the mortality rate in patients with delirium and early detection is an excellent tool to improve this outcome.