Does Perioperative Comprehensive Geriatric Assessment Reduce the Incidence of Postoperative Delirium in Older, Frail Patients Undergoing Elective Inpatient Surgery?
The purpose of this research is to find out the best way to reduce delirium in frail, older patients undergoing planned surgery. Delirium is a state of confusion and difficulty concentrating that is temporary. Delirium may make the person anxious, angry, sleepy, not think clearly, or hallucinate. Being frail in medicine means that the body may not easily recover from a stressor, such as surgery. This study will determine if a detailed on-going evaluation by a Geriatrician, doctor who specializes in the care of older adults, after surgery is better at decreasing the risk of delirium than simply highlighting the patient's frailty in the electronic medical record.
• Frailty as measured by the 5-modified frailty index (5-mFI) during the anesthesia preoperative assessment. The 5-mFI consists of 5 elements: 1-dependency for activities of daily living, 2-congestive heart failure within 30 days, 3-chronic obstructive pulmonary disease or pneumonia currently treated with antibiotics, 4-diabetes, and 5-hypertension. The diagnosis of frailty by the 5-mFI is based upon the presence of 2 or more of the elements.
• Elective inpatient surgery with an expected LOS \> 1 day;
• Receiving general anesthesia
• Adults who are unable to consent if they have a designated proxy able to consent