Role of comorbidities in caring for chronicly ill elderly patients with and without dementia

BACKGROUND AND AIM The aim of this study is to highlight the presence of co-morbidities and their role in caring for chronicly ill patients with and without dementia. PATIENTS AND METHODS The study was performed on a group of 213 chronic patients. We used CIRS-G (Cumulative Illness Rating Scale in Geriatric Population) and IADL (Instrumental Activity Daily Living) scales. We compared the scores of severity and dependency. RESULTS The most frequent co-morbidities in the study group were cardiac, vascular, locomotor, sensory organs and metabolic diseases. For the study group, the highest medium score of severity according to the CIRS-G scale was represented by cardiovascular diseases. For patients with dementia, psychiatric, cardiac, vascular, metabolic, genitourinary, sensory organs and locomotion domains had the highest score of severity and dependency. CONCLUSIONS The health status of chronic patients with and without dementia is characterized by multiple pathologies with various degrees of severity and dependency.