Yip Wai Lam, Fan Kit Ling, Lui Chun Tat, Leung Ling Pong, Ng Fu, Tsui Kwok Leung
Accident & Emergency Department, Queen Mary Hospital, Hong Kong, China.
Emergency Medicine Unit, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China.
World J Emerg Med. 2015;6(4):283-8. doi: 10.5847/wjem.j.1920-8642.2015.04.006.
The epidemiological data on elderly patients attending Accident and Emergency Departments (AEDs) in Hong Kong is lacking. The study aimed to examine the epidemiology of geriatric patient visits to AEDs in Hong Kong, including demographic data and predictors of life-saving interventions (LSI) and admission.
A retrospective cross-sectional study of geriatric patients older than 64 years old attending three AEDs during the year 2012, with a sample of 1 200 patient visits recruited. The data were retrieved from the medical records of the respective hospitals. Descriptive characteristics of the visits were provided. Multivariate logistic regression was performed to evaluate the predictors of LSI and hospital admission.
The mean age of the patients was 79.1 years. Totally 49.7% of the patients were male. "Diseases of the respiratory system" was the commonest diagnosis in AEDs as well as that required admission. The admission rate was 56.8%. Logistic regression demonstrated that dependent activity of daily living (ADL), arrival by ambulance, and the higher number of co-morbidities were predictors of LSI, while advanced age, dependent ADL, institutionalized patients, arrival by ambulance, and higher number of co-morbidities were predictors of hospital admission.
Ageing population is creating an imminent burden on the emergency service in Hong Kong. Previously unavailable epidemiological information about geriatric attendance to AEDs was described. This forms the basis for development of future studies concerning the medical services on this specific group of patients.
香港急症室老年患者的流行病学数据尚缺。本研究旨在调查香港老年患者前往急症室就诊的流行病学情况，包括人口统计学数据以及挽救生命干预措施（LSI）和住院治疗的预测因素。
对2012年期间前往三家急症室就诊的64岁以上老年患者进行回顾性横断面研究，共招募了1200例就诊患者样本。数据从各医院的病历中获取。提供了就诊的描述性特征。进行多因素逻辑回归分析以评估LSI和住院治疗的预测因素。
患者的平均年龄为79.1岁。男性患者占49.7%。“呼吸系统疾病”是急症室最常见的诊断以及需要住院治疗的疾病。住院率为56.8%。逻辑回归分析表明，日常生活活动依赖（ADL）、救护车送达以及共病数量较多是LSI的预测因素，而高龄、ADL依赖、住院患者、救护车送达以及共病数量较多是住院治疗的预测因素。
人口老龄化给香港的急诊服务带来了紧迫负担。描述了此前尚无的老年患者前往急症室就诊的流行病学信息。这为开展针对这一特定患者群体医疗服务的未来研究奠定了基础。
