What causes sudden change in mental status?
What causes sudden change in mental status?
In infants and children, the most common causes of altered mental status include infection, trauma, metabolic changes, and toxic ingestion. Young adults most often present with altered mental status secondary to toxic ingestion or trauma.
What does a change in mental status indicate?
An alteration in mental status refers to general changes in brain function, such as confusion, amnesia (memory loss), loss of alertness, disorientation (not cognizant of self, time, or place), defects in judgment or thought, unusual or strange behavior, poor regulation of emotions, and disruptions in perception.
How do you assess change in mental status?
Assessment of the patient with altered mental status must include the following key elements:
- Level of consciousness. Is the patient aware of his surroundings?
- Attention.
- Memory.
- Cognitive ability.
- Affect and mood.
- Probable cause of the present condition.
Is altered mental status permanent?
Altered mental status (AMS) is not a disease: it is a symptom. Causes run the gamut from easily reversible (hypoglycemia) to permanent (intracranial hemorrhage) and from the relatively benign (alcohol intoxication) to life threatening (meningitis or encephalitis).
What are some physical causes of altered mental status?
What causes AMS?
- Hypoxia (low oxygen levels)
- Low or high blood sugar levels, or diabetic ketoacidosis.
- Heart attack.
- Dehydration, low or high blood sodium levels.
- Thyroid or adrenal gland disease.
- Urinary tract infection or renal failure.
Does dehydration cause altered mental status?
Mental status changes begin with mild dehydration and worsen with each stage, ending in delirium. In moderate dehydration, short-term memory loss occurs. Once an older person is thirsty, they are already mildly dehydrated.
How do you treat a patient with altered mental status?
Patients can be treated with benzodiazepines. A thorough history and physical examination are necessary to establish the cause of the altered mental state. However, these are not always available in the ED, and it may take some detective work to establish a diagnosis.
What are risk factors for altered mental status?
Older adults may have AMS after changes in their medicines, heart attacks, or hip fractures. Infections, such as urinary tract infections or pneumonia, can also increase the risk for AMS. A medical history of high blood pressure, heart problems, diabetes, or psychiatric illness increases the risk for AMS.
