Senior Citizens

possible causes of acute confusional state / delirium

- UTI : If seeking advice from a healthcare provider regarding a quick onset of confusion, you might be surprised if the doctor orders a urine specimen. Actually, a urine specimen is not a bad idea since urinary tract infections (UTIs) are a common cause of delirium in the elderly.

- Keep reminding the doctors to check for UTIs, and get them to do blood tests even if the urine tests are clear, because my mom's infections didn't always show up in her urine samples even when she had high uric acid in her blood.

- UTI's are extremely common in the elderly and they do cause confusion. My father recently passed away from complications following a sever UTI that went septic (into his blood stream).

- My 92 year old grandmother suddenly got very confused and when we took her to the hospital she was diagnosed with a severe UTI caused by mild dehydration.

Common Symptoms of UTI in Elders

- Painful urination

- Frequency or more frequent urination

- Incontinence or incontinence that is unusual for that person

- Flank pain

- Fever

- Confusion or delirium

What are the Causes of Delirium in Seniors?

Sudden confusion in the elderly may be caused by a wide variety of conditions, such as:

- nutritional causes, including dehydration, altered electrolytes such as magnesium and potassium, or low levels of nutrients such as niacin, vitamin B12, vitamin C, or thiamine

- illness or infections, including urinary tract infections and influenza - this may be the only sign that a senior has rather than typical symptoms

- low blood sugar, especially in seniors with diabetes but may occur in others

- low oxygen levels, including low oxygen levels caused by sleep apnea

- heart conditions and changes in blood vessels and blood circulation

- changes in the way the body regulates body temperature, hypothermia, or hyperthermia

- mini stroke or transient ischemic attack (TIA)

- thyroid deficiency

Reversible causes of delirium include the following:

- Metabolic problem - highest incident - 20-40% of cases of delirium result from a organ failure (liver, kidney) diabetes, hyperthyroidism, hypothyroidism

- Electrolyte disturbances, especially dehydration, sodium (sodium) imbalance, and thyroid problems

- Infection, especially urinary or respiratory tract infection

- Intracranial, such as a brain infection, hemorrhage, stroke, or tumor (rare)

- Urinary or fecal problems, such as not being able to urinate or have a bowel movement

- Myocardial (heart) and lungs, eg heart attack, problems with heart rhythm, worsening of heart failure or chronic obstructive lung disease

- A head injury/trauma - fall

Tests may include:

Blood tests

CT scan of the head

Electroencephelogram EEG

Mental status tests

Neuropsychological tests

Urine tests

Thyroid function tests

Thyroid stimulating hormone level

vascular dementia

- CT scan of the head showed multiple lacunar infarcts in the right basal ganglia and left cerebellar region.

Delirium can also result from too little stimulation of the senses, especially in people who already have some degree of mental impairment. In one study, delirium after an operation occurred twice as often in patients in intensive care units without windows as in patients in similar units with windows. In addition, a form of delirium that occurs at night (ie, sundowning) may be partly due to sensory deprivation. Vision and hearing loss may make it more difficult for the person to perceive reality and increase the chances of delusions or hallucinations.

The main goal of treatment is to identify and correct the underlying cause of delirium. Generally, a comprehensive medical evaluation is needed, including specific laboratory tests. These may include simple blood tests and more sophisticated tests like brain imaging studies (eg, CAT scan and MRI). Unless they are absolutely necessary, all drugs are generally stopped.

* Most importantly, caregivers can't be too careful when they notice a change in behavior in an older adult, no matter how subtle. "Falls, confusion, new onset of incontinence in someone who had been getting to the bathroom, decrease in appetite," she says, "any of these can be a sign of a urinary tract infection.

b.charlie

Although she appeared to be an elderly woman, she ran faster than any of us in the marathon.

NO........

Mrs Endo was very elderly. In fact she was in her 60's when she died.

1. Greeks said that the fates were trying to tell you something 2. Your going totally insane

no

William Gao is a child.

Yes you can, and bless you for asking. As people age, they could be in a lot of pain but are too proud to show it, so they become irritable ( grouchy) and sometimes they will snap your head off, only to feel remorse after, they will be thankful for a kind word or deed, so do not worry about it, let it roll off your shoulders, just remember, they feel sorry too, but again, their aches and pain get in the way.

Not all old people are cranky, but if you know an old person that is cranky, he/she might have a disease and they don't feel well. Or, they might have had someone or something that they love die.

68

While Icelolly itself does not offer senior discounts, you can try to contact the airlines in which you purchase your ticket through. Many airlines will add an additional senior discount.

Technology/ new stuff.

yes

Elderly people can become increasingly aggressive at specific times of the day, especially in the evening. It is probably because they feel a decrease of independence, mobility, and decision making . Delusions and psychotic episodes are not congruent with a childlike sense of inadequacy, especially with one's own adult children care-givers.

The most common medical conditions affecting the aging are coronary heart disease, stroke, cancer, and the flu. Accidents resulting in injuries such as hip fractures are also common among the elderly.

Macy's doesn't give a senior discount at their stores. One little thing they will do is if you buy an item at full price and it goes on sale they will credit the difference.

As you grow older, you experience physiological changes that can cause glitches in brain functions you’ve always taken for granted. It takes longer to learn and recall information. You’re not as quick as you used to be. In fact, you may mistake this slowing of your mental processes for true memory loss. But in most cases, if you give yourself time, the information will come to mind. So, while it’s true that certain brain changes are inevitable when it comes to aging, major memory problems are not one of them. That’s why it’s important to know the difference between normal age-related forgetfulness and the symptoms that may indicate a developing cognitive problem.

senior citizens are our elder we should respect them whenever they scream on us that do not means that they donot like us but they always says for our future onlly

One of the only ways to find out if they give senior discounts is to ask. Many places do give senior discounts.

Gerontophobia

There are many people who can get a AAA membership discount. Employees of the company and their families receive a discount as well as senior citizens.

American Association of Retired Persons.