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Practice Commentary
Charles E. Driscoll, MD
Arch Fam Med. 1994;3(8):681.
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| Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text PDF and any section headings. |
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This study suggests that there is a silent disability endured by the elderly patient who is burdened with both physical and emotional disease. Only one in four cases of clinically significant depression was identified for treatment. I suspect that the identification and rehabilitation of poor functional status is even less frequently undertaken. In clinical practice, one could expect depression and functional impairment to show up as reduced compliance with medical therapies, cognitive decline, poor nutritional status, loss of independence, or unexpected morbidity and mortality. One might also speculate that readmissions within the 90-day postdischarge period would be more likely.
It is very difficult to link the stressors of depression and functional impairment in a predictive model of sufficient strength to mandate that every elderly patient receive comprehensive testing on every hospital admission. Also, numerous studies have documented that the elderly do not unload all of their concerns on their physicians;
. . . [Full Text PDF of this Article]
Author Affiliations
University of Iowa Iowa City
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