Letter to the Editor
Impact of an ageing population on the intensive care unit
Dear Editor,
Intensive care unit (ICU) resources are scarce and expensive, and deciding if intensive care is suitable for older patients involves complex clinical reasoning,...
Original Article
Transitional care strategies at emergency department for elderly patients: A multicentre study in Singapore
In Singapore, greater efforts are being directed towards developing an integrated health and social ecosystem under the new Healthier SG strategy announced by the...
Letter to the Editor
A strategy to make COVID-19 vaccination more accessible to the elderly
Dear Editor,
Singapore embarked on the COVID-19 National Vaccination Programme in early 2021. The main modality employed to achieve the mass vaccinations has been the...
Editorial
ICU nutrition: Bracing for the silver tsunami
The global population’s life expectancy is growing with a steady increase in the proportion of older patients admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU).1...
Original Article
Cost analysis of a Patient-Centred Medical Home for community-dwelling older adults with complex needs in Singapore
The Patient-Centred Medical Home (PCMH) is a model of chronic care that replaces episodic primary care, with the delivery of primary care to patients,...
Review Article
Determinants of emergency department utilisation by older adults in Singapore: A systematic review
Older adults in Singapore contribute to a disproportionately higher number of visits to the emergency department (ED), mirroring trends around the world.1,2 For instance,...
Original Article
Perceived Need for Community Geriatric Services: A Survey at a Regional Hospital in Singapore in an Inpatient Setting
Singapore has one of the most rapidly ageing populations in the wor1d. The number of the very aged (>75 years old) has already increased...
Original Article
The Reliability and Validity of the Alzheimer’s Disease Assessment Scale Cognitive Subscale (ADAS-Cog) among the Elderly Chinese in Hong Kong
The Alzheimer’s Disease Assessment Scale (ADAS) is a 21-item scale designed to assess the severity of cognitive and non-cognitive impairment in patients with Alzheimer’s...
Editorial
Delirium in patients following general anaesthesia
Delirium is a disturbance of consciousness characterised by an acute onset and fluctuating course of inattention, accompanied by either a change in cognition or...
Original Article
Critical Role of Functional Decline in Delayed Discharge from an Acute Geriatric Unit
In the last decade, many countries have experienced alarming transformation in their demographic patterns, with the elderly population emerging as the fastest growing segment...
Original Article
The Practice of Foregoing Life Support in the Critically Ill “Old Old”: A Singapore Perspective
Studies on the foregoing of life support (FLS) in North America, Europe and Australia have shown diversity in terms of the incidence, decision-making process...
Original Article
Early Unplanned Readmission of Elderly in Singapore: A Retrospective Study
The number of elderly people in Singapore is expected to increase over the next 2 decades. The proportion of those 60 years and above...
Original Article
Epidemiology of Beta-haemolytic Group G Streptococcal Bacteraemia in Singapore (1996 to 1998)
Human isolates of group G streptococci (GGS) that form large colonies are similar to group A streptococci (GAS) in terms of virulence and cause...
Original Article
Nursing Home Falls: A Local Perspective
Falls in the elderly has been a well-studied subject and now occupies an important place in geriatric medicine. While many studies have been done...
Review Article
The Development of Geriatric Psychiatry Services in Singapore
The population of Singapore is ageing. In 2002, it was estimated that there were 252,700 persons aged >65 years, forming 7.5% of the population....
Others
Emergency Department Usage by Community Step-Down Facilities – Patterns and Recommendations
It is projected that elderly persons will make up 18.4% of Singapore’s population by the year 2030. Currently, there are 5189 residents staying in...
Others
Critically Ill Elderly Who Require Mechanical Ventilation: The Effects of Age on Survival Outcomes and Resource Utilisation in the Medical Intensive Care Unit of a General Hospital
Increasing life expectancy and ageing of the “post-war baby boomer” generation have led to the rapidly ageing demographic of many Asian countries. Singapore’s elderly...
Original Article
Polypharmacy and Inappropriate Medication Use in Singapore Nursing Homes
The elderly usually have multiple medical problems, requiring prescription drugs to treat diseases and to prevent complications arising from them. Currently, in the United...
Original Article
Hip Fractures in the Elderly: The Impact of Comorbid Illnesses on Hospitalisation Costs
Management of hip fractures is costly and continues to generate significant costs throughout the one-year period after discharge.1 They demand considerable resources from a...
Commentary
A Review of Geriatric Education in Singapore
The United Nations International Plan of Action on Ageing (IPA), formulated during the First World Assembly on Ageing in Vienna in 1982, listed gerontological...
Original Article
Profiling Acute Presenting Symptoms of Geriatric Patients Attending an Urban Hospital Emergency Department
Singapore’s population is ageing rapidly. Today 1 out of every 12 Singaporeans is aged 65 or above. In 2030, it is expected to be...
Original Article
Junior Doctors’ Attitudes Towards Older Adults and its Correlates in a Tertiary-care Public Hospital
Singapore is a rapidly ageing society. The proportion of older persons above the age of 65 was 6.8% of the population in 1995 and...
Original Article
Clinical Outcome Following Treatment of Stable and Unstable Intertrochanteric Fractures with Dynamic Hip Screw
Intertrochanteric (IT) fracture is among the most common orthopedic injuries in the elderly population, and is associated with osteoporosis. It usually occurs as a...
Original Article
Determinants of Late-Stage HIV Disease at Diagnosis in Singapore, 1996 to 2009
The first case of HIV infection in Singapore was diagnosed in 1985, and the first case of AIDS was diagnosed in September 1986. Since...
Original Article
Can Preoperative Scoring Systems be Applied to Asian Hip Fracture Populations? Validation of the Nottingham Hip Fracture Score (NHFS) and Identification of Preoperative Risk Factors in Hip Fractures
Osteoporotic hip fractures are common and have significant consequences on mortality and functional capability which indirectly has familial, social and economic repercussions. The inpatient...
Clinical Update
Anticoagulation Needs in Asians with Atrial Fibrillation: A Mythbuster
Atrial fibrillation (AF) increases the risk of stroke 5-fold in Caucasians. While the relative risk for stroke is somewhat lower in Asia, estimated at...
Review Article
Changing Landscape of Nursing Homes in Singapore: Challenges in the 21st Century
Nursing homes trace their evolution to American alms-houses in the 1930s where retired nurses welcomed the elderly and ill into their homes. In Singapore,...
Original Article
Determinants of Health-Related Quality of Life Among Community Dwelling Elderly
Singapore is experiencing an unprecedented age shift as the post-war baby boomers turn 65 years in 2012. Currently there are 378,700 people aged 65...
Commentary
Prehabilitation and Its Role in Geriatric Surgery
The population in Singapore is ageing rapidly. According to statistics, by 2030, 1 in 2 adults in Singapore will be >65 years old. As...
Letter to the Editor
Congenital adhesion band causing recurrent subacute intestinal obstruction in a virgin abdomen
Intestinal obstruction (IO) caused by malignancy and adhesion bands from previous surgery is common among adults. However, IO caused by congenital adhesion bands (CAB)...
Editorial
Tackling osteoporosis and fragility fractures in Singapore
A shift in worldwide population ageing demographics has occurred in the 21st century. The longevity miracle is most keenly felt in Singapore, a young...