Systematic review and meta-analysis of occurrence rates of delirium in brain tumor patients

Delirium in brain tumor patients is associated with increased morbidity and mortality and worse quality of life. Systematic review and meta-analysis of 27 studies (35,958 brain tumor patients) found that the overall occurrence of delirium was 17% (95% CI 11-24); ocurrence of delirium in patiens with low-grade gliomas, high grade gliomas, and brain metastases was 10% (6-16), 21% (10-40) and 31% (16-50), respectively. Compared to the occipital lobe, there was a higher occurrence of delirium for tumors in the frontal (RR 3.08; 95% CI 1.35-8.22) and temporal lobes (2.88; 1.22-7.93). Delirium was associated with an average of 4.62 (95% CI 3.23-6.01) additional hospitalized days compared to no delirium.