OUTCOME OF INTENSIVE-CARE OF THE OLDEST-OLD CRITICALLY ILL PATIENTS

Objective: To determine the short-term and long-term outcome of critically ill "oldest-old" (greater-than-or-equal-to 85 yrs) patients. Design: Retrospective chart review and follow-up telephone interview. Setting: ICUs at a tertiary care hospital. Methods: The medical records of all patients greater-than-or-equal-to 85 yrs of age admitted to the ICUs during 1988 were reviewed. Demographic information, severity of illness, major interventions, mortality rate, and hospital charges were examined. A follow-up telephone interview was conducted to determine the quality of life and mortality rate after discharge. Results: Of 34 patients greater-than-or-equal-to 85 yrs of age admitted to the ICU, 21 (62%) survived to discharge from the hospital, and 13 (62%) of these 21 patients were discharge to home. Mean +/- SD hospital charges were $34,738 +/- 34,366. Seventeen of the 21 patients were contacted for long-term follow-up, and ten of these patients were alive at a mean follow-up time of 18 +/- 10 months (range 1 to 32). Eight of the ten patients described their quality of life as fair or good. Conclusion: These findings suggest that age alone may be an inappropriate criterion for allocation of ICU resources.