Validity and predictability of the confusion assessment method for the intensive care unit for delirium among critically ill patients in the intensive care unit: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Objective: To identify the validity and predictability of the confusion assessment method for the intensive care unit (CAM-ICU) for delirium in critically ill patients in the ICU.

Methods: In this systematic review, PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, and MEDLINE databases were searched for observational studies investigating delirium screening tools for ICU patients. In the meta-analysis, we combined the sensitivity, specificity, positive likelihood ratio, negative likelihood ratio, diagnostic odds ratio, and area under the curve (AUC) of SROC to analysis the predictive value of CAM-ICU.

Results: Twenty-nine articles met the inclusion criteria. The pooled sensitivity and specificity values were 0.82 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.75-0.87) and 0.95 (95% CI: 0.93-0.97), respectively. The AUC point estimate of the SROC curve was 0.96 (95% CI: 0.94-0.97). Race (Asian or Others) could affect the pooled sensitivity and specificity, and the analysis method (Patient- or Scan-based) and study design were not sources of heterogeneity for pooled sensitivity and specificity.

Conclusions: The CAM-ICU is a valid and reliable tool for delirium prediction among ICU patients. When introducing CAM-ICU to assess delirium, it is necessary to localize its language and content to improve its predictive efficacy in different countries and different ethnic groups.

Relevance to clinical practice: In clinical practice, nurses can use CAM-ICU to evaluate delirium in critically ill patients in ICU. However, it is necessary to debug the language and content according to the application population.