Recomendaciones sobre la valoración integral y multidimensional del anciano hospitalizado. Posicionamiento de la Sociedad Española de Medicina Interna

Este documento de posicionamiento describe los aspectos más relevantes e imprescindibles sobre la valoración integral y multidimensional del anciano hospitalizado. El cambio del patrón demográfico y del perfil epidemiológico de las enfermedades requiere una adaptación de los Servicios de Medicina Interna, que tengan en cuenta las vulnerabilidades de las personas ancianas en este contexto. Una valoración integral y multidimensional y la elaboración multidisciplinar de un plan de atención durante el ingreso pueden tener un impacto para evitar mortalidad, discapacidad e institucionalización al alta. Es necesario que todos los internistas adquiramos competencias para mejorar la experiencia de la hospitalización en la persona mayor y obtengamos mejores resultados en salud en nuestros pacientes. Este documento lo ha desarrollado el Grupo Focal de Envejecimiento y el Grupo de Trabajo de Pluripatología y Edad Avanzada, y está avalado por la Sociedad Española de Medicina Interna. This position paper describes the most relevant and essential aspects of a comprehensive, multidimensional assessment of hospitalized elderly people. The change in demographic patterns and the epidemiological profiles of diseases makes it necessary for internal medicine departments to adapt in order to take into account the vulnerabilities of the elderly in this context. A comprehensive, multidimensional assessment and the multidisciplinary development of a care plan during hospitalization can have an impact in terms of preventing mortality, disability, and institutionalization at discharge. It is necessary for all internists to acquire skills to improve the hospitalization experience in the elderly and obtain better health outcomes in our patients. This document has been developed by the Focus Group on Aging and the Polypathological and Advanced Age Working Group and endorsed by the Spanish Society of Internal Medicine

RICORS2040 : The need for collaborative research in chronic kidney disease

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is a silent and poorly known killer. The current concept of CKD is relatively young and uptake by the public, physicians and health authorities is not widespread. Physicians still confuse CKD with chronic kidney insufficiency or failure. For the wider public and health authorities, CKD evokes kidney replacement therapy (KRT). In Spain, the prevalence of KRT is 0.13%. Thus health authorities may consider CKD a non-issue: very few persons eventually need KRT and, for those in whom kidneys fail, the problem is 'solved' by dialysis or kidney transplantation. However, KRT is the tip of the iceberg in the burden of CKD. The main burden of CKD is accelerated ageing and premature death. The cut-off points for kidney function and kidney damage indexes that define CKD also mark an increased risk for all-cause premature death. CKD is the most prevalent risk factor for lethal coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and the factor that most increases the risk of death in COVID-19, after old age. Men and women undergoing KRT still have an annual mortality that is 10- to 100-fold higher than similar-age peers, and life expectancy is shortened by ~40 years for young persons on dialysis and by 15 years for young persons with a functioning kidney graft. CKD is expected to become the fifth greatest global cause of death by 2040 and the second greatest cause of death in Spain before the end of the century, a time when one in four Spaniards will have CKD. However, by 2022, CKD will become the only top-15 global predicted cause of death that is not supported by a dedicated well-funded Centres for Biomedical Research (CIBER) network structure in Spain. Realizing the underestimation of the CKD burden of disease by health authorities, the Decade of the Kidney initiative for 2020-2030 was launched by the American Association of Kidney Patients and the European Kidney Health Alliance. Leading Spanish kidney researchers grouped in the kidney collaborative research network Red de Investigación Renal have now applied for the Redes de Investigación Cooperativa Orientadas a Resultados en Salud (RICORS) call for collaborative research in Spain with the support of the Spanish Society of Nephrology, Federación Nacional de Asociaciones para la Lucha Contra las Enfermedades del Riñón and ONT: RICORS2040 aims to prevent the dire predictions for the global 2040 burden of CKD from becoming true

Evolution of the use of corticosteroids for the treatment of hospitalised COVID-19 patients in Spain between March and November 2020: SEMI-COVID national registry

Objectives: Since the results of the RECOVERY trial, WHO recommendations about the use of corticosteroids (CTs) in COVID-19 have changed. The aim of the study is to analyse the evolutive use of CTs in Spain during the pandemic to assess the potential influence of new recommendations. Material and methods: A retrospective, descriptive, and observational study was conducted on adults hospitalised due to COVID-19 in Spain who were included in the SEMI-COVID- 19 Registry from March to November 2020. Results: CTs were used in 6053 (36.21%) of the included patients. The patients were older (mean (SD)) (69.6 (14.6) vs. 66.0 (16.8) years; p < 0.001), with hypertension (57.0% vs. 47.7%; p < 0.001), obesity (26.4% vs. 19.3%; p < 0.0001), and multimorbidity prevalence (20.6% vs. 16.1%; p < 0.001). These patients had higher values (mean (95% CI)) of C-reactive protein (CRP) (86 (32.7-160) vs. 49.3 (16-109) mg/dL; p < 0.001), ferritin (791 (393-1534) vs. 470 (236- 996) µg/dL; p < 0.001), D dimer (750 (430-1400) vs. 617 (345-1180) µg/dL; p < 0.001), and lower Sp02/Fi02 (266 (91.1) vs. 301 (101); p < 0.001). Since June 2020, there was an increment in the use of CTs (March vs. September; p < 0.001). Overall, 20% did not receive steroids, and 40% received less than 200 mg accumulated prednisone equivalent dose (APED). Severe patients are treated with higher doses. The mortality benefit was observed in patients with oxygen saturation </=90%. Conclusions: Patients with greater comorbidity, severity, and inflammatory markers were those treated with CTs. In severe patients, there is a trend towards the use of higher doses. The mortality benefit was observed in patients with oxygen saturation </=90%

Assessment of long-term cognitive dysfunction in older patients who undergo heart surgery

Introduction: Older patients are more likely to have cognitive dysfunction, and a great proportion of patients undergone surgical procedures are older adults. Postoperative cognitive dysfunction (POCD) has been shown as a consistent complication after major surgical procedures such as heart surgery. Aim: To determine the presence of long-term POCD in ≥65-year-old patients undergoing coronary artery bypass grafting and aortic valve replacement, and to establish related risk factors. Methods: We prospectively and sequentially included 44 patients with coronary disease and aortic stenosis scheduled for heart surgery. Follow-up of all patients was standardized and a neurocognitive evaluation were performed preoperatively and at 1, 6 and 12 months after surgery. Results: Patients experienced a significantly postoperative cognitive dysfunction (33.5%, 63.4% and 38.9% at 1, 6 and 12 months, respectively) from baseline (20.5%). Patient-associated aspects such as age (p < 0.01), history of smoking (p < 0.01), arterial hypertension (p = 0.022), diabetes mellitus (p = 0.024), heart failure (p = 0.036) and preoperative cognitive dysfunction (p < 0.01), and surgery-associated aspects such as EuroSCORE (p < 0.01) and operation time (p < 0.01) were identified as related risk factors. Conclusions: Older patients who underwent heart surgery had long-term POCD. Both patient- and surgery-related risk factors were established as related risk factors. These findings suggest that the prevalence of cognitive dysfunction after cardiac surgery in older patients could be related to a possible progression to dementia. In addition, many of the risk factors identified may be modifiable but in practice, these patients are not attended to for their possible cognitive impairment. Resumen: Introducción: Los pacientes de edad avanzada tienen más riesgo de sufrir deterioro cognitivo, y son cada vez más frecuentemente sometidos a una cirugía. El deterioro cognitivo posquirúrgico (DCP) tras cirugía cardiaca se ha mostrado como una complicación importante. Objetivos: Determinar la presencia del DCP a largo plazo en pacientes ≥ 65 años intervenidos de derivación coronaria y reemplazo de válvula aórtica, y establecer los factores de riesgo relacionados. Métodos: Se realizó un estudio en el que se incluyeron de forma prospectiva y secuencial 44 pacientes con enfermedad coronaria y estenosis aórtica programados para cirugía. El seguimiento fue estandarizado y se realizaron evaluaciones neuropsicológicas preoperatoriamente a los 1, 6 y 12 meses postoperatorios. Resultados: Se observó la presencia de un DCP significativo (33,5, 63,4 y 38,9% a 1, 6 y 12 meses, respectivamente) respecto al nivel basal (20,5%). Se identificaron como factores de riesgo variables asociadas al paciente como la edad (p < 0,01), el tabaquismo (p < 0,01), la hipertensión arterial (p = 0,022), la diabetes mellitus (p = 0,024), la insuficiencia cardiaca (p = 0,036) y el deterioro cognitivo preoperatorio (p < 0,01), y variables quirúrgicas como el EuroSCORE (p < 0,01) y el tiempo de intervención (p < 0,01). Conclusiones: Los pacientes de edad avanzada sometidos a cirugía cardiaca presentaron DCP a largo plazo. Variables asociadas al paciente y quirúrgicas se mostraron como factores de riesgo, muchas de ellas modificables. Estos hallazgos sugieren que la presencia de DCP en pacientes de más edad podría suponer mayor riesgo de evolución a demencia. En la práctica clínica habitual no es evaluado el rendimiento cognitivo