Frailty and delirium in hospitalized older adults: A systematic review with meta-analysis

OBJECTIVE: to estimate the prevalence and synthesize diverse evidence about the relationship between frailty and delirium in hospitalized older adults. METHOD: a systematic review with meta-analysis in which observational studies conducted with older adults about frailty, delirium and hospitalization, were selected without time of language restrictions. The search was conducted in the MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, Scopus, Web of Science and CENTRAL databases during August 2021. The precepts set forth by the Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) - Evidence Synthesis Groups were followed. The meta-analysis model estimated the relative risk corresponding to the prevalence of frailty and delirium. The inverse variance method for proportions was used to estimate the prevalence values and relative risks for binary outcomes. RESULTS: initially, 1,244 articles were identified, of which 26 were included in the meta-analysis (n=13,502 participants), with 34% prevalence of frailty (95% CI:0.26-0.42; I (2)=99%; t (2)=0.7618, p=0) and 21% for delirium (95% CI:0.17-0,25; I (2)=95%; t (2)=0.3454, p<0.01). The risk for hospitalized older adults to develop delirium was 66% (RR: 1.66; 95% CI:1.23-2.22; I(2)=92%; t(2)=0.4154; p<0.01). CONCLUSION: 34% prevalence of frailty and 21% of delirium in hospitalized older adults, with frailty being an independent risk factor for developing delirium, with an increased chance of 66% when compared to non-frail individuals.