Hospitalization and associated factors in people with Alzheimer's disease residing in a long-term care facility in southern Taiwan

Abstract

Aim: It has been reported that many people with dementia require hospitalizations. The objective of the present study was to determine predictive factors for hospitalizations in people with dementia.

Methods: A total of 70 individuals with dementia living in a veterans' home in southern Taiwan were consecutively enrolled. During prospective follow up, all hospitalization events were recorded.

Results: The mean age of residents with dementia was 86.1 ± 4.0 years, and the mean follow-up time for this population was 2.2 ± 1.1 years. Among individuals, 62.9% suffered from malnutrition or were at risk of malnutrition (minimal nutritional assessment-short form score ≤11), and 8.6% of individuals had a body mass index of <18.5 Kg/m² . There were 52 (74.3%) individuals who had previously fallen. Overall, 51 of 70 residents were hospitalized during the follow-up period. In those individuals with previous falls, there was a significantly increased risk of hospitalization (odds ratio 5.61, 95% CI 1.18-26.7). Furthermore, three factors were significantly associated with the risk of fall, including handgrip strength, malnutrition and Mini-Mental State Examination score.

Conclusions: The results of the present study showed that hospitalization was a frequent event in residents with dementia living in a long-term care facility. The major predictor for hospital admission was history of a previous fall. Screening those with dementia for history of injurious falls and associated risk factors for falling could help identify those at risk of hospitalization, thus necessitating a comprehensive intervention to reduce hospitalization. Geriatr Gerontol Int 2017; 17 (Suppl. 1): 50-56.

Keywords: dementia; fall; hospitalization; long-term care facility; malnutrition.