DeltaScan: 1 minute single channel EEG, a valuable tool for diagnosing delirium in frail older patients in the emergency department

IntroductionDiagnosing delirium is challenging, especially in the emergency department (ED), where up to 80% of diagnoses are missed. The DeltaScan is a portable EEG-based delirium monitor that makes a single-channel EEG recording and quantifies delirium on a 5-point scale. The aim of this study was to determine whether the DeltaScan is an accurate diagnostic instrument for delirium in frail, older patients that present at the ED. Method and materialsFor this cross-sectional study, data were collected between July 2022 and December 2022 at the ED of a non-academic teaching hospital in the Netherlands. Patients were included if they were older than 70 and frail. The included patients underwent the DeltaScan measurement. The results of the DeltaScan were compared with the results of the Confusion Assessment Method assessed by delirium experts. ResultsA total of 104 patients were included in this study. The mean age was 84.9 years and 55.4% were female. Because of technical difficulties 3 patients had to be excluded. There was no diagnostic consensus between delirium experts in 21 patients. In the remaining 80 patients, delirium was diagnosed in 41%. The sensitivity of the DeltaScan was 81.3% (67.7-94.8) and the specificity was 89.6% (80.9-98.2). The positive predictive value was 83.9% (70.9-96.8) and the negative predictive value was 87.8% (78.6-96.9). The area under the receiver operating characteristics curve was 86.5% (77.5-96.6). ConclusionDiagnosing a delirium in frail, older patients attending the ED can be challenging, even for delirium experts. We demonstrated that DeltaScan measurement is an objective, accurate and feasible approach to diagnose delirium. We therefore argue that the DeltaScan should have a permanent place for diagnosing delirium in the ED.