COGNITIVE FUNCTION AFTER CRITICAL ILLNESS: UNDERSTANDING PATIENT, ICU, AND POST-ICU FACTORS

Ramona O. Hopkins, Ph.D.
Professor of Psychology and Neuroscience, Psychology Department and Neuroscience Center,
Brigham Young University, Provo, UT, USA,
Research Consultant, Critical Care Medicine, Pulmonary and Critical Care Division,
Intermountain Medical Center, Murray, UT, USA

In the United States, ~55,000 patients are hospitalized in the intensive care unit (ICU) each day and two-thirds of ICU days are accounted for by people over 65 years old. In critically ill patients, 25% to 46% experience cognitive impairments after ICU discharge, with many patients having impairments that persist for years. Despites its prevalence, cognitive impairment are frequently under-appreciated.  This course will first review findings from basic and clinical research on cognitive impairments and following critical illness.  Second, the course will review structural and DTI brain imaging findings following critical illness. Third this course will discuss pathophysiological  processes, risk factors, and everyday functioning of post-ICU cognitive impairments. Finally, the course will cover ICU and post-ICU therapies, including cognitive rehabilitation, and their effect on cognitive outcomes in ICU survivors. As a result of participation in this course, the learner will achieve the following objectives: (1) have a deeper understanding of the critical neural structures involved in and nature of cognitive impairments following critical illness; (2) understand mechanisms and potentially modifiable risk factors for development of cognitive impairments in ICU survivors; (3) and be familiar with leading edge translational research techniques for investigating cognitive impairments in this population.