Delirium is associated with high mortality in elderly patients with acute decompensated heart failure

Background: Delirium is associated with high mortality after cardiac surgery. However, evidence on the epidemiology of delirium in patients with acute decompensated heart failure (ADHF) is limited. This study aimed to assess the incidence and prognostic impact of delirium in patients with ADHF. Methods: This single-center prospective observational study enrolled 132 consecutive patients with ADHF. We utilized the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, fifth edition and classified the patients into two groups according to the presence or absence of delirium. The primary endpoint was 90-day all-cause mortality. The prognostic impact and risk factors of delirium were evaluated using multivariable Cox and logistic regression analyses, respectively. Results: The median patient age was 83 (interquartile range, 75–87) years. Approximately 51.5% were men. Delirium occurred in 36 (27.3%) patients, and hyperactive delirium was the most frequent type (86.1%). The 90-day all-cause mortality was higher in the patients with delirium than in those without (21.6% versus 3.9%, log-rank p=0.002). Delirium was associated with higher mortality with an adjusted hazard ratio of 6.8 (95% confidence interval, 1.1–42.6, p=0.042). The risk factors associated with delirium included advanced age, male sex, higher clinical frailty scale score, and dementia. Conclusions: Delirium was associated with a higher 90-day all-cause mortality in the elderly patients with ADHF. Hyperactive delirium was the most common subtype.