NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Elderly patients who are hospitalized in special geriatric units show less functional decline and are more likely to return home than their peers who are hospitalized in regular units.

That's the conclusion reached by a Spanish research team, whose review of previously published studies appears in the journal BMJ Online First.

According to lead author Dr. Juan J. Baztan at Hospital Central Cruz Roja in Madrid and co-investigators, the geriatric units "provide increased attention to a patient's level of functioning, specific treatment of diagnoses common to older people, and integrated planning of discharge to maximize clinical outcomes."

Such units are staffed by geriatricians, nurses trained in geriatrics, therapists, and social workers. Patients are treated for such problems as pneumonia and other infections, heart failure, and lung disease that do not require treatment in an intensive care unit.

The researchers' review covered 11 studies that compared outcomes of care in geriatric units and conventional hospital units for patients aged 65 years and older.

Three studies analyzed functional decline, defined as loss of independence in activities of daily living. These results showed that care in a geriatric unit was associated with a lower risk of functional decline at hospital discharge.

The likelihood of living at home after discharge was also greater for patients treated in geriatric units. The studies also indicated trends toward reduced length of hospital stay and a lower cost of hospital care.

Baztan's team recommends that future research should "focus on the impact of acute geriatric units on functional decline in the medium term and should try to identify the specific activities associated with this effect."

SOURCE: BMJ Online First, January 23, 2009.

• More News on Health Facilities
• More News on Seniors' Health

Related MedlinePlus Pages:

• Health Facilities
• Seniors' Health