Does delirium during hospitalization influence the development of mild cognitive impairment (MCI), dementia, and longitudinal cognitive trajectories? To investigate this, researchers analyzed data from 7,030 participants in the Mayo Clinic Study of Aging (MCSA) between 2004 and 2023. The study included 3,501 participants with at least one hospitalization, with a median age of 74.1 years.

Over a median follow-up of 7.2 years, 75 participants (2.1%) experienced delirium within 30 days of hospitalization. Delirium was associated with an increased risk of MCI (adjusted hazard ratio [aHR], 3.67) and dementia (aHR, 5.39), as well as accelerated decline in longitudinal cognitive testing. These findings suggest that delirium during hospitalization is associated with an increased risk of subsequent MCI, dementia, and cognitive decline, highlighting its importance as a clinical marker of…