NOTE: The form in Appendix 1 (pages 136-137) is copyrighted.
Current symptoms of delirium (over the past several hours) are rated. Items are scored from 0 (none) to 3 (severe).
Items:
(1) reduced level of consciousness (awareness)
(2) disorientation
(3) short-term memory impairment
(4) impaired digit span
(5) reduced ability to maintain and shift attention
(6) disorganized thinking
(7) perceptual disturbance
(8) delusions
(9) decreased/increased psychomotor activity
(10) sleep-wake cycle disturbance (disorder of arousal)
total score =
= SUM(points for all 10 items)
Interpretation:
• minimum score: 0
• maximum score: 30
• The higher the score, the more delirious the patient.
• Patients with moderate or severe delirium had scores > 13.
• 56% of patients with mild delirium had scores >= 8.
