The Concept of Delirium
- 26 August 1999
- journal article
- review article
- Published by S. Karger AG in Dementia and Geriatric Cognitive Disorders
- Vol. 10 (5) , 310-314
- https://doi.org/10.1159/000017160
Abstract
The concept of delirium has a long and confusing history. This article outlines the development of ideas relating to core features of the syndrome: disturbance of consciousness, disturbance of cognition, its course and its external causation. The modern concept of delirium, and the diagnostic criteria found in current classifications are based upon a long tradition of clinical observation in younger patients, and their emphasis on positive symptoms and identifiable external causes may not be applicable to our ageing population.Keywords
This publication has 3 references indexed in Scilit:
- Can Delirium Be Separated from Dementia?Dementia and Geriatric Cognitive Disorders, 1999
- Description of the Disorder: History, Phenomenology, NomenclatureInternational Psychogeriatrics, 1991
- Delirium in the Medically Ill Elderly: Operationalizing the DSM-III CriteriaInternational Psychogeriatrics, 1991