Exploring the Correlations of Lung Ultrasound with Delirium and Outcomes in Acute GEriatrics World: a Multicenter, Prospective, Observational Study from the GRETA Group of the Italian Society of Gerontology and Geriatrics

Launched by UNIVERSITY OF MILANO BICOCCA · Oct 31, 2024

Keywords

ClinConnect Summary

This clinical trial is looking at how lung ultrasound (LUS) can help doctors understand the health of older patients (65 years and older) who are admitted to the hospital with breathing problems, such as pneumonia or heart issues. The main goal is to see if problems found in the lungs using ultrasound when patients first arrive in the hospital can predict if they will develop delirium, which is a sudden change in mental state that can happen during illness. The study will also examine how these lung findings relate to other important outcomes, like how long patients need extra oxygen, if they need help with breathing, and how long they stay in the hospital.

To be part of this study, patients must be 65 or older and have acute respiratory symptoms, such as difficulty breathing or a cough, when they arrive at the hospital. They will undergo a lung ultrasound within 48 hours of their admission, but they must not have delirium when they enter the hospital. Importantly, this study does not require any special treatments; it simply involves monitoring patients as part of their regular care in multiple hospitals. Participants will need to give consent to be part of the study, and their health will be tracked to gather valuable information that could improve care for older adults with respiratory issues in the future.

Gender

ALL

Eligibility criteria

• Inclusion Criteria:
• • Patients aged 65 years or older, admitted directly from the Emergency Room or Emergency Medical Services with acute respiratory symptoms or signs.
• Presence of acute respiratory symptoms, including:
• • Dyspnea or cough.
• • Oxygen saturation less than 94% or respiratory rate ≥ 22 breaths per minute, or PaO2/FiO2 \< 300.
• • Clinical suspicion of acute respiratory illness (e.g., pneumonia, acute congestive heart failure, pulmonary edema, COPD, pleural effusion, pneumothorax).
• • Lung ultrasound (LUS) performed within 48 hours of admission for clinical reasons.
• • Signed informed consent for participation in the study.
• Exclusion Criteria:
• • Presence of delirium upon admission.
• • Refusal to sign the informed consent form or consent to data collection.
• • Terminal illness with an estimated survival prognosis of no more than 3 months.
• • Previous open thoracic or cardiothoracic surgery compromising the quality of LUS images.
• • Lack of cooperation during the LUS examination.
• • Any condition determined by the investigators that could introduce bias into the study or compromise the quality of the LUS examination.