CARE HOME RESIDENTS FREQUENTLY DEHYDRATED ON ADMISSION TO HOSPITAL

摘要

People admitted to hospital from care homes are often dehydrated on admission, putting them at increased risk of dying, suggests a study of more than 20,000 patients. Dehydration leading to high sodium levels is known to be an independent predictor of in-hospital mortality, with older and infirm people - particularly those who require assistance with drinking - at increased risk. Researchers from Barnet and Chase Farm Hospitals NHS Trust, the University of Oxford and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine reviewed more than 20,000 patients aged 65 and over admitted to a London hospital for the first time between 2011 and 2013.