A. Nichonchubhair et al., USE OF THE ABBREVIATED MENTAL TEST TO DETECT POSTOPERATIVE DELIRIUM IN ELDERLY PEOPLE, British Journal of Anaesthesia, 75(4), 1995, pp. 481-482
We investigated the validity of the abbreviated mental test (AMT) as a
guide to the diagnosis of delirium in 100 patients aged move than 65
yr. Patients were assessed using the AMT on the day before and on the
third day after operation. Fifteen patients were delirious on the thir
d postoperative day; 10 of 43 patients undergoing orthopaedic surgery
and five of 57 patients undergoing non-orthopaedic surgery. Delirium d
eveloped in four of 16 patients with a preoperative AMT score less tha
n 8 and in 11 of 84 patients with a preoperative AMT score of 8 or mor
e. Patients who developed delirium had a greater decline in AMT score
(mean 2.7 (SD 0.9)) than patients who did not develop delirium (0.7 (1
.0)) (P < 0.001). The sensitivity and specificity of a decline in AMT
score of 2 or more points after surgery for diagnosis of postoperative
delirium were 93% and 84%, respectively.