Effect of inpatient antibiotic treatment among older adults with delirium found with a positive urinalysis: a health record review

BACKGROUND: Among older adults with delirium and positive urinalysis, antibiotic treatment for urinary tract infection is common practice, but unsupported by literature or guidelines. We sought to: i) determine the rate of antibiotic treatment and the proportion of asymptomatic patients (other than delirium) in this patient population, and ii) examine the effect of antibiotic treatment on delirium resolution and adverse outcomes. METHODS: A health record review was conducted at a tertiary academic centre from January to December 2020. Inclusion criteria were age ≥ 65, positive delirium screening assessment, positive urinalysis, and admission to general medical units. Outcomes included rates of antibiotic treatment, delirium on day 7 of admission, and 30-day adverse outcomes. We compared delirium and adverse outcome rates in antibiotic-treated vs. non-treated groups. We conducted subgroup analyses among asymptomatic patients. RESULTS: We included 150 patients (57% female, mean age 85.4 years). Antibiotics were given to 86%. The asymptomatic subgroup (delirium without urinary symptoms or fever) comprised 38% and antibiotic treatment rate in this subgroup was 68%. There was no significant difference in delirium rate on day 7 between antibiotic-treated vs. non-treated groups, (entire cohort RR 0.94 [0.41–2.16] and asymptomatic subgroup RR 0.69 [0.22–2.15]) or in 30-day adverse outcomes. CONCLUSIONS: Older adults with delirium and positive urinalysis in general medical inpatient units were frequently treated with antibiotics – often despite the absence of urinary or other infectious symptoms. We failed to find evidence that antibiotic treatment in this population is associated with delirium resolution on day 7 of admission. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12877-022-03549-8.