Assessment of the Delirium Prevalence among Pediatric Patients Admitted to the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit in West of Iran

Background: Delirium is often not diagnosed or treated in pediatric intensive care unit (PICU). Delirium leads to a longer hospital stay period, which in turn can result in an increase in hospital treatment costs and an increase in the risk of nosocomial infections. Objectives: The present study aimed to determine the prevalence of delirium and its risk factors in PICU pediatric. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted in 2021 - 2022 in hospitals affiliated to Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences. The data collection instruments included the Richmond Agitation-Sedation Scale (RASS) and the Cornell Assessment of Pediatric Delirium (CAPD) questionnaire. Delirium was assessed by the researcher twice a day, in the morning and the evening. The assessment was carried out by a trained person, and the examination results were confirmed by an anesthesiologist who was a member of the research team. Data analysis was carried out using SPSS ver. 16. Results: According to our study results, the majority of the 89 examined patients were male (n = 52 cases, 59.8%), aged 13 - 16 years (n = 37 cases, 42.5%), and were admitted due to pneumonia (n = 24 cases, 27.6%). The prevalence of delirium was higher in patients with pain and those requiring oxygen therapy (P < 0.05). Furthermore, the overall prevalence of delirium in PICU patients was 25.3% (n = 22 cases). Conclusions: Investigating the prevalence of delirium in all age groups – pediatric and adolescents, in particular – was found to be extremely important. It was also found that the prevalence of delirium in PICU patients was significant; therefore, it was recommended that necessary preventive and medical interventions should be made to deal with these patients.