ObjectiveTo discuss the clinical characteristics of liver cirrhosis in elderly patients. MethodsWe retrospectively analyzed the clinical data of 67 patients (elderly group) with liver cirrhosis aged ≥60 treated between January 1998 and December 2010. Then, we compared these cases with another 72 liver cirrhosis patients (non-elderly group) aged<60. ResultsThe incidence of jaundice, ascites and albumin deficiency in the elderly patients was significantly higher than that in the non-elderly patients (P<0.05). Complications in the elderly group were relatively more, including electrolyte imbalance, infections, gastrointestinal bleeding, hepatic encephalopathy, liver cancer, liver and kidney syndrome and liver and lung syndrome, and the incidence of these complications was all significantly higher than the non-elderly group (P<0.05) except the liver and kidney syndrome (P>0.05). The causes of liver cirrhosis in both groups were similar. The most common cause was hepatitis B virus infection, followed by chronic alcoholism, but in the elderly group, chronic alcoholism, cholestasis, poisoning from medicines and poisons and liver blood circulation disorders were more common than the non-elderly group (P<0.05); hepatitis B and non-alcoholic fatty hepatitis were more common in the non-elderly group than in the elderly group (P<0.05). The elderly group had more Child-Pugh class C cases (P<0.05), while there were more class A cases in the non-elderly group (P<0.05). Twenty-six patients died in the elderly group with a mortality rate of 38.8%; while only 13 died in the non-elderly group with a mortality rate of 18.1%. The difference of mortality rate was significant between the two groups (P<0.05). Common causes of death in the elderly group were infection, hepatic encephalopathy, and electrolyte disorders and gastrointestinal bleeding, while the common causes of death in the non-elderly group were gastrointestinal bleeding and electrolyte disorders. ConclusionThe etiology, clinical manifestations and prognosis of liver cirrhosis in elderly patients differ from those in younger patients. We must pay more attention on treating complications of liver cirrhosis in elderly patients.
ObjectiveTo investigate the epidemiological situation of pre-hospital emergency elderly and non-elderly patients in Chengdu and explore the characteristics of pre-hospital care in the city.MethodAll pre-hospital care records in the Chengdu 120 Emergency System Database in 2017 were retrospectively collected. According to the age of the patients, they were divided into the elderly group (≥60 years old) and the non-elderly group (<60 years old). The disease spectrum, the trends of the number of emergency help calls, the changes in different diseases over time, as well as the disease composition of the patients who died in the two groups were compared.ResultsA total of 179 387 pre-hospital emergency patients were enrolled, including 59 980 elderly patients and 119 407 non-elderly patients. Most of them were male patients in both groups. Patients in the elderly group were mainly between 60 to 89 years old, and the ones in the non-elderly group were mainly between 18 to 59 years old. The pre-hospital emergency patients in the elderly group presented with trauma, nervous system, symptoms and signs, and cardiovascular system diseases mainly, accounting for 29.19%, 14.64%, 13.82%, and 12.86%, respectively. In the non-elderly group, trauma, acute poisoning, and symptoms and signs were predominant, accounting for 50.89%, 10.98%, and 10.08%, respectively. Among the pre-hospital deaths, the number in the elderly group was the larger, accounting for 69.61% (7 043 cases); the mortality rate was 11.74%, with sudden death (28.70%), cardiovascular diseases (25.95%), and respiratory diseases (16.07%) being the major causes. The pre-hospital mortality rate of non-elderly patients was 2.58%, mainly including traumatic diseases (35.41%), sudden death (unknown cause of death) (25.33%), and cardiovascular diseases (17.56%). The number of emergency help calls in the elderly group began to increase gradually from September, reaching a peak in December and hitting the trough in February. While in the non-elderly group, the peak of the emergency help calls appeared in July, and it also fell to the lowest in February. The proportion of the number of emergency help calls in the elderly group was higher in January to February and October to December; while the peak in non-elderly group was in July. The number of emergency help calls in the elderly group were mainly concentrated in the daytime (08:00 to 20:00). In the non-elderly group, the changes in the number of emergency help calls were similar to that of the elderly, however, with another peak (20:00 to 24:00). The proportion of the number of emergency help calls in the elderly group was 06:00 to 09:59, and the peak time of the non-elderly group was in the early morning (00:00 to 04:59) and night (20:00 to 23:59).ConclusionsThe number of pre-hospital care for elderly and non-elderly patients has its own characteristics in terms of the time and the distribution of disease spectrum. Trauma and cardiovascular diseases are the most common causes of pre-hospital care and death in Chengdu. And the pre-hospital mortality in the elderly group is much larger than that in non-elderly group. Relevant departments can allocate emergency resources rationally, and focus on improving the on-site rescue capacity towards related diseases.
ObjectiveVideo electroencephalography (VEEG) monitoring for health education of elderly patients based on a process-based communication model, and explore the impact of this model on the success rate, negative emotions, nursing satisfaction, and active cooperation rate of such patients.MethodsFrom September 2017 to September 2019, 118 patients with suspected epilepsy, encephalitis and other diseases who required VEEG monitoring in Suining Central Hospital were selected for this study (patients aged 61 to 73 years; 54 males and 64 females). Patients were divided into 2 groups using a random number table method, 59 patients in each group.A group received routine nursing, and B group received health education based on the process communication model. The monitoring success rate, negative emotion, active cooperation rate, and nursing satisfaction were compared between the two groups.ResultsThe total effective rate in the B group was 86.44%, which was significantly higher than 76.27% in the A group (P<0.05). After nursing intervention, the scores of anxiety and depression in the two groups were significantly decreased, but the decline was greater in the B group (P<0.05). The active cooperation rate and nursing satisfaction of the B group were significantly higher than those of the A group (P<0.05).ConclusionCompared with conventional nursing, health education based on process communication mode can significantly improve the success rate of VEEG monitoring in elderly patients, alleviate the negative emotions of patients, improve the active cooperation rate and nursing satisfaction.
ObjectiveTo explore the relationship of levels of serum interleukin-6 (IL-6), tumor necrosis factor-α(TNF-α) and C-reactive protein (CRP) with lung function in elderly patients with stable COPD and whose pulmonary function classification was levelⅡor above. MethodsSixty elderly patients with stable COPD and with the pulmonary function classification of levelⅡor above and 35 age-matched healthy subjects in the Gansu Provincial Hospital from November 2012 to March in 2014 were recruited in the study.Serum IL-6, TNF-αand CRP levels were detected by electro-chemiluminescence immunoassay (ECLI), enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and immunoturbidimetric assay, respectively.And their relationships with lung function were explored by Spearman correlation analysis. ResultsThe levels of serum IL-6[(33.0±15.1) mg/L vs.(15.9±8.7) mg/L], TNF-α[(53.8±20.1) pg/mL vs.(22.2±8.0) pg/mL] and CRP[(8.7±3.9) mg/L vs.(5.8±2.3) mg/L] were significantly higher in the stable COPD patients than those in the healthy controls (P < 0.01).With the increase of COPD severity grade, the levels of serum IL-6, TNF-αand CRP increased gradually, and the lung function of FEV1%pred and FEV1/FVC decreased gradually (P < 0.05).The levels of serum IL-6, TNF-αand CRP were negatively correlated with lung function (P < 0.05). ConclusionsThere is airway inflammation in elderly patients with stable COPD.Airway inflammation may be the reason of the decline of pulmonary function in patients with stable COPD.
Abstract: Objective To determine the effects of early enteral nutrition (EEN) on postoperative recovery in elderly patients with esophageal cancer. Methods We included 100 elderly patients with esophageal cancer who were admitted at the PLA 100 Hospital between January 2006 and April 2010, and whose diagnoses were confirmed by pathological examination. The patients were divided into an early enteral nutrition (EEN) group and a parenteral nutrition (PN) group, with 50 patients in each group. There were 32 males and 18 females with an average age of 72 years in the EEN group. There were 30 males and 20 females with an average age of 69 years in the PN group. We analyzed the effect of the nutrition administration method on bowel function recovery, hospital stay, complication rate, and nutritional status one week after surgery. Results The anal exhaust time (45.3±12.7 h vs. 73.6±11.7 h), time until anal defecation (80.5 h±15.6 h vs. 140.1±13.2 h), and hospital stay (13.0±1.8 d vs. 15.2±3.3 d) in the EEN group were all shorter than those in the PN group (Plt;0.05). The rates of lung infection, anastomotic leakage, and cardiac complications in the EEN group were significantly lower than those of the PN group (Plt;0.05). One week after the operation, the serum albumin (ALB), peripheral blood lymphocytes, transferrin, and 24 h urea nitrogen (BUN) in the EEN group were higher than those in the PN group (Plt;0.05). Conclusion Compared with parenteral nutrition, enteral nutrition can promote metabolic function in elderly patients after recovery, reduce morbidity, and promote recovery.
Objective To evaluate the influence of dexmedetomidine on the stress of elderly patients with cardiovascular risk undergoing gastrointestinal laparoscopic surgery. Methods From August 2014 to December 2015, 210 patients undergoing elective laparoscopic gastrointestinal operations were randomly divided into three groups, including the low concentration group (group D1), the high concentration group (group D2), and the control group (group C), with 70 cases in each group. The patients in group D1 and group D2 were injected with dexmedetomidine (0.4 and 0.8 μg/kg respectively) by infusion pump before anesthesia induction, and were continuously pumped with dexmedetomidine [0.4 and 0.8 μg/(kg·h) respectively] until the end of the surgery. Meanwhile, the patients in group C were injected with normal saline of the equal volumes. The heart rate and mean arterial pressure (MAP) was recorded before anesthesia, after endotracheal intubation and extubation. Myocardial ischemia and cardiovascular adverse events thatneeded to be handled were recorded. The concentrations of dopamine, adrenaline (AD) and noradrenaline (NE) were monitored at 15:00 one day before surgery (Ty), one hour after the beginning of surgery (T0), and at 15:00 of the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd day after surgery (T1, T2, T3). Results A total of 178 patients completed the study and were enrolled in this study, including 60 cases in group D1 and 59 cases in group D2 and C respectively. In group D1 and D2, the heart rates after intubation [(80.4±9.6), (68.2±10.5) times/minutes], extubation [(70.1±6.2), (69.7±7.8) times/minutes] and MAP after extubation [(100.2±12.0), (98.0±13.1) mm Hg (1 mm Hg=0.133 kPa)] were lower than those in group C [(98.4±10.5) and (95.2±7.3) times/minutes; (121.8±10.5) mm Hg], and the differences were significant (P<0.05). The bradycardia and hypotension in group D2 (27.12%, 22.03%) was significantly higher than those in group C (3.39%, 8.47%). Hypertension in group D1 and D2 (5.00%, 1.69%) was significantly lower than that in group C (37.29%), and the differences were significant (P<0.05). Compared with the base value at Ty in the three groups, the concentration of dopamine at T0-T3 in group C, at T0-T1 in group D1, and at T0 in group D2 increased significantly (P<0.05); the AD at T0-T3 in group C, at T0-T2 in group D1, and at T0-T1 in group D2 increased significantly (P<0.05); the NE at T0-T2 in group C, and at T1 in group D1 increased significantly (P<0.05). Compared with group C at the same time, the DA at T3 in group D1 and at T1-T3 in group D2, the AD at T2-T3 in group D1 and at T0-T3 in group D2, the NE at T0-T1 in group D1 and T0-T3 in group D2, decreased significantly (P<0.05). Conclusions Dexmedetomidine can effectively restrain the changes of hemodynamics and catecholamine induced by perioperative stress responses in a dose-dependent manner. During the surgery of elderly patients with cardiovascular risk, the concentration of dexmedetomidine should be controlled moderately to gain the optimal effect.
Objective To investigate the impact of nutritional risk on unplanned readmissions in elderly patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), to provide evidence for clinical nutrition support intervention. Methods Elderly patients with COPD meeting the inclusive criteria and admitted between June 2014 and May 2015 were recruited and investigated with nutritional risk screening 2002 (NRS 2002) and unplanned readmission scale. Meanwhile, the patients’ body height and body weight were measured for calculating body mass index (BMI). Results The average score of nutritional risk screening of the elderly COPD patients was 4.65±1.33. There were 456 (40.07%) patients who had no nutritional risk and 682 (59.93%) patients who had nutritional risk. There were 47 (4.13%) patients with unplanned readmissions within 15 days, 155 (13.62%) patients within 30 days, 265 (23.28%) patients within 60 days, 336 (29.53%) patients within 180 days, and 705 (61.95%) patients within one year. The patients with nutritional risk had significantly higher possibilities of unplanned readmissions within 60 days, 180 days and one year than the patients with no nutritional risk (all P<0.05). The nutritional risk, age and severity of disease influenced unplanned readmissions of the elderly patients with COPD (all P<0.05). Conclusions There is a close correlation between nutritional risk and unplanned readmissions in elderly patients with COPD. Doctors and nurses should take some measures to reduce the nutritional risk so as to decrease the unplanned readmissions to some degree.
Objective To explore the effect of early rehabilitation treatment on complications and prognosis of elderly patients with sever pneumonia undergoing mechanical ventilation. Methods The patients who meeting the inclusion criteria were randomly divided into an early rehabilitation group and a control group, with 35 cases in each group. On basis of same routine treatment, the early rehabilitation group was treated with early rehabilitation. The early rehabilitation methods included exercise therapy, electrical stimulation therapy, swallowing therapy, cough training and wheelchair-bed transfer training, etc. The patients received individual training methods according to their conditions. The difference of two groups were observed in the rates of ICU-acquired weakness (ICU-AW), ventilator-associate pneumonia (VAP), the incidence of delirium, the mechanical ventilation time, ICU-hospital time, total hospital time, 30-day hospital mortality, extubation fail rate and tracheotomy rate. Results Compare with the control group, the incidence of ICU-AW (14.28% vs. 37.14%), VAP (8.57% vs. 28.57%), and delirium (40.00% vs. 65.71%) in the early rehabilitation group were significantly reduced (all P<0.05). The duration of delirium [(3.50±1.31) dvs. (6.40±1.47) d], the ventilation time [(6.32±2.19) d vs. (9.40±4.43) d], ICU hospitalization time [(10.80±3.64) d vs. (15.31±3.85) d] and total hospitalization time [(22.52±7.56) d vs. (30.22±11.54) d] of the early rehabilitation group were significantly lower than the control group (all P<0.001). The tracheotomy rate and 30-day hospital mortality of the early rehabilitation group were significantly lower than the control group (25.71%vs. 51.42% and 28.57% vs. 54.28%, both P<0.05). There was no significant difference in extubation fail rate (5.71%vs. 11.42%, P>0.05). In the early rehabilitation group, there were no complications such as pipe prolapse, limb injury or serious arrhythmia. Conclusion Early rehabilitation can reduce the incidence of ICU-AW, VAP, delirium in elderly patients with severe pneumonia, help to shorten the mechanical ventilation time, ICU hospitalization time and total hospitalization time, reduce extubation failure rate and tracheotomy rate, so it is safe and effective, and worthy of being popularized and applied.
Objective To explore the diagnosis and treatment strategies for elderly patients with ground-glass opacity (GGO). MethodsThe imaging features and postoperative pathological findings of the elderly patients with pulmonary GGO receiving surgery in our hospital from 2017 to 2019 were retrospectively analyzed. The patients were divided into an elderly patient group and a non-elderly patient group based on their age. Results Finally 575 patients were included in the study. There were 281 elderly patients, including 83 males and 198 females, with an average age of (67.0±5.3) years. There were 294 non-elderly patients, including 88 males and 206 females, with an average age of (49.1±7.3) years. Compared with the non-elderly patients, elderly GGO patients showed the following distinct clinical features: long observation time for lesions (P=0.001), high proportion of rough edges of GGO (P<0.001), significant pleural signs (P＜0.001) and bronchial signs (P＜0.001), and high proportion of type Ⅱ-Ⅳ GGO (P<0.001), lobectomy type (P=0.013), and invasive lesions reported in postoperative pathology (P<0.001). There was no statistical difference in the average hospital stay between the two groups (P=0.106). Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that GGO diameter and GGO type were the main factors affecting the operation. Observation time, GGO diameter, GGO type and pleural signs were the main influencing factors for postoperative pathological infiltrative lesions. The cut-off value of GGO diameter in predicting infiltrating lesions was 10.5 mm in the elderly patients group. Conclusion The size and type of GGO are important factors in predicting invasive lesions and selecting surgical methods. Elderly patients with radiographic manifestations of type Ⅱ-Ⅳ GGO lesions with a diameter greater than 10.5 mm should be closely followed up.
Objective To systematically review the benefits and risks of more intensive versus less intensive blood pressure control in Asian elderly patients over 60 years old. Methods The PubMed, EMbase, Cochrane Library, CNKI, WanFang Data, VIP and CBM databases were electronically searched to collect randomized controlled trials (RCTs) of intensive versus less blood pressure control from inception to August 2022. Two reviewers independently screened the literature, extracted data and evaluated the risk of bias of the included studies. Meta-analysis was then performed using RevMan 5.3 software. Results A total of 6 RCTs involving 20 701 patients were included. The results of meta-analysis showed that intensive blood pressure control could reduce the incidence of cardiovascular death, stroke, and heart failure. However, it could not reduce the incidence of all-cause death and myocardial infarction. Subgroup analysis showed that systolic blood pressure greater than 140 mmHg could not reduce the incidence of cardiovascular death. The safety evaluation found no increase in adverse events or renal injury in intensive blood pressure control group. Conclusion The current evidence shows that intensive blood pressure control can reduce the incidence of cardiovascular death, stroke and heart failure events in elderly Asian patients over 60 years old, but it has no effect on all-cause mortality and myocardial infarction events. It has good safety. Due to the limited quantity and quality of the included studies, more high-quality studies are needed to verify the above conclusion.