| Table
1: |
|
Potential
Causes of Delirium
|
| Intracranial
Causes |
- Brain trauma
- Seizures and postictal
states
- Infections
- Neoplasm
- Vascular disorders
|
| Drugs |
- Anticholinergics
- Anticonvulsants
- Antihypertensives
- Antiparkinsonian
agents
- Antipsychotics
- Cardiac glycosides
- Cimetidine
- Clonidine
- Disulfiram
- Insulin
- Opiates
- Phencyclidine
- Ranitidine
- Salicylates
- Sedatives
- Steroids
- Alcohol
|
|
Poisons
|
- Carbon monoxide
- Heavy metals and
other industrial poisons
|
| Endocrine
Dysfunction (Hypo- or Hyperfunction) |
- Adrenal
- Pancreatic
- Parathyroid
- Pituitary
- Thyroid
|
| Diseases
of Nonendocrine Origin |
- Cardiovascular
diseases
- Arrhythmias
- Cardiac failure
- Hypertensive
encephalopathy
- Hypotension
- Deficiency states
- Folate
- Nicotinic acid
- Thiamine
- Vitamin B12
- Kidney and urinary
tract diseases
- Liver diseases
- Lung diseases
- Carbon dioxide
narcosis
- Hypoxia
- Other
- Systemic infections
with fever and sepsis
- Trauma (head
or general)
|
| Adapted
from reference 2. |