Altered mental status causes: Difference between revisions
Kiran Singh (talk | contribs) |
Kiran Singh (talk | contribs) |
||
| Line 128: | Line 128: | ||
{{columns-list|4| | {{columns-list|4| | ||
*[[Acidosis]] | *[[Acidosis]] | ||
*[[Adrenal insufficiency|Acute adrenal insufficiency]] | |||
*[[Acute altitude sickness]] | *[[Acute altitude sickness]] | ||
*[[Delirium|Acute confusional state]] | *[[Delirium|Acute confusional state]] | ||
| Line 181: | Line 182: | ||
*[[Beta blockers]] | *[[Beta blockers]] | ||
*[[Anterior cerebral artery|Bilateral anterior cerebral artery occlusion]] | *[[Anterior cerebral artery|Bilateral anterior cerebral artery occlusion]] | ||
*[[Bilateral internal carotid occlusion]] | *[[Internal carotid artery|Bilateral internal carotid occlusion]] | ||
*[[Basal ganglia diseases]] | *[[Basal ganglia diseases]] | ||
*[[Bipolar disorder]] | *[[Bipolar disorder]] | ||
Revision as of 16:09, 19 November 2015
|
Altered mental status Microchapters |
|
Diagnosis |
|---|
|
Treatment |
|
Altered mental status On the Web |
|
American Roentgen Ray Society Images of Altered mental status |
Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1]; Associate Editor(s)-in-Chief: Pratik Bahekar, MBBS [2] Kiran Singh, M.D. [3]
Overview
Altered mental status has varying time courses and degrees of severity. Acute changes in mental status are usually secondary to delirium, stupor, and coma, which are forms of acute brain dysfunction. These changes occur over a period of hours or days and are usually precipitated by an underlying medical illness that is potentially life threatening. Chronic alterations in mental status (e.g. dementia) occur over a period of months and years and are less likely to be precipitated by a life-threatening illness. For these reasons, acute changes in mental status will be the focus of this review. Altered mental status is rarely caused by psychiatric illnesses such as depression or schizophrenia, and in elder patients, these should be diagnoses of exclusion. Acute brain dysfunction (delirium, stupor, and coma) and their underlying etiology should be ruled out prior to considering any psychiatric diagnoses, especially in patients without a previous history of psychiatric illness.