Hospitalization could worsen physical, cognitive skills--studies
Published: 2010-07-17 14:58:01By: Neha Jindal | The Med Guru | April 12, 2010
A couple of studies have suggested that being hospitalized frequently could cause decline of physical energy as well as cognition.
Researchers at Johns Hopkins University and University of Washington, U.S., established that elderly and people with serious ailments were known to have impaired strength, weakened motion or physical function after being hospitalized often.
Lead researcher, critical care specialist and associate professor, Dale Needham, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine said, “Our work challenges physicians to rethink how they treat critically ill patients and shows the downstream benefits of early mobilisation exercises.”
Details of first study
First study was conducted by Johns Hopkins University’s Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation and Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, wherein researchers studied previous physical and mental records of patients in intensive care units (ICU) of numerous institutions.
Researchers implemented certain changes in one ICU section wherein patients could switch from ‘bed-rest’ to ‘as tolerable’ condition.
Further, patients were given only the required medication than continuous intravenous benzodiazepines--psychoactive drug altering brain function.
Also, patients with protracted muscle weakness were suggested to consult neurologist.
They also set procedures for physical and occupational healing sessions for all patients with physiotherapists.
These changes resulted in a noteworthy decline in patients’ delirium which had earlier caused hallucination or unawareness of their surroundings.
This also resulted in decline in patients taking sedatives or
narcotics from about 96 to 73 and 77 percent respectively, along with
increase in the level of alertness.
Furthermore, patients undergoing physical or occupational therapy escalated from 70 to 93 percent.