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Delirium in Older Adults: Practical Guide for Primary Health Services

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Primary Care Mental Health in Older People

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Abstract

Delirium is a common and serious acute neuropsychiatric syndrome and is known to increase the risk for subsequent functional decline and mortality. The etiologies of delirium are diverse and multifactorial and often reflect the pathophysiological consequences of an acute medical illness, medical complication or drug intoxication. Delirium can have a widely variable presentation and is often missed and underdiagnosed as a result. At this chapter we discuss the prediction, etiology, prevention, diagnosis, subtypes and treatment (pharmacological and non-pharmacological) of delirium in the elderly population.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychiatry and Mental Health, Psychogeriatric Unit, Coimbra University Hospital Center, Coimbra, Portugal

    Manuel Coroa & Horácio Firmino

  2. Department of Psychological Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, University of Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal

    Vasco Nogueira

  3. Primary Health Care and General Practice of Faculty of Medicine of University of Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal

    Luiz Miguel Santiago

Authors
  1. Manuel Coroa
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  2. Horácio Firmino
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  3. Vasco Nogueira
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  4. Luiz Miguel Santiago
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Unité de Psychiatrie et de Psychothérapie, Centre Les Toises, Lausanne, Switzerland

    Carlos Augusto de Mendonça Lima

  2. Mental Health and Population Health, NOVA University Lisbon, Lisbon, Portugal

    Gabriel Ivbijaro

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Coroa, M., Firmino, H., Nogueira, V., Santiago, L.M. (2019). Delirium in Older Adults: Practical Guide for Primary Health Services. In: de Mendonça Lima, C., Ivbijaro, G. (eds) Primary Care Mental Health in Older People. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-10814-4_20

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-10814-4_20

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-030-10812-0

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-030-10814-4

  • eBook Packages: MedicineMedicine (R0)

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