Table 2.
Characteristics of 60 study participants
| Variable | |
|---|---|
| Age—mean ± SD | 79 ± 8.2 |
| Gender—n (%) | |
| Women | 32 (53) |
| Men | 28 (47) |
| Living Situation before admission—n (%) | |
| Lives alone in private home | 23 (38.3) |
| Lives with spouse or another adult in private home | 28 (46.7) |
| Lives in assisted housing | 9 (15.0) |
| Highest level of education—n (%) | |
| Elementary school | 14 (23.3) |
| High school | 26 (43.3) |
| Vocational or trade school | 7 (11.7) |
| University (bachelors and masters) | 13 (21.6) |
| Hours spent in emergency department—median (range) | 23.8 (5.5–123) |
| Reason for hospital admissiona—n (%) | |
| Pneumonia and chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases | 15 (25) |
| Other diseases (e.g. ketoacidosis, cancer, fever, hypoglycemia, renal failure and sepsis) | 13 (21.7) |
| Congestive heart failure, acute coronary syndrome and other heart diseases | 10 (16.7) |
| Diarrhea and gastroenteritis | 7(11.7) |
| Syncope, transient ischemic attack, and vertigo | 7 (11.7) |
| Failure to cope | 4 (6.7) |
| Gastrointestinal bleed | 3(5.0) |
| Cellulitis and other skin infections | 3(5.0) |
| Anemia and pancytopenia | 3(5.0) |
| Illnesses with orthostatic effects—n (%) | |
| Yes | 52 (86.7) |
| No | 6 (13.3) |
| Medications with orthostatic effects—n (%) | |
| Yes | 53 (88.3) |
| No | 7 (11.7) |
| Mobility devices—n (%) | |
| Cane | 27 (45) |
| None | 23 (38.4) |
| Walker | 10 (16.7) |
| MEWS—mean ± SD | 2.0 ± 1.06 |
| MEWS—median (range) | 2 (0.50–5.0) |
| DASI—median (range) | 7.2 (0–58.20) |
| CIRS-G—mean total scale score ± SD | 15.77 ± 4.69 |
| Number of CIRS-G organ systems rated at level 4—n (%) | |
| 0 | 5 (8.3) |
| 1 | 30 (50) |
| 2 | 22 (37) |
| 3 | 3 (5) |
| ACCI—mean total scale score ± SD | 5.88 ± 1.91 |
ACCI Age Adjusted Charlson Comorbidity Index, CIRS-G Cumulative Illness Rating Scale – for Geriatrics, DASI Duke Activity Status Index, MEWS Modified Early Warning Score, n number, SD standard deviation
aNumbers do not total 60 because some patients had more than one reason for admission reported. All other diseases had less than 2 cases in each disease category