Why delirium comes and goes in older adults
Official title: Delirium Dynamics: Understanding Causes and Effects
Funded at Northwestern University · NIH-11263746 · Data updated 2026-11-12
Researchers will use continuous sleep and activity monitoring in hospitalized older adults to find patterns that link sleep-wake and circadian disturbances with episodes of delirium.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Northwestern University NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Chicago, United States) |
| Project start | May 15, 2024 |
| Project end | January 31, 2029 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $804,695 |
| NIH project number | 5R01AG078261-03 |
| Project ID | NIH-11263746 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Older adults (typically 65+) who are hospitalized and are at risk of or experiencing delirium, including people with Alzheimer’s disease or other dementias.
✕Less likely to help
Younger people, those not hospitalized, or anyone unwilling or unable to wear continuous monitoring devices are unlikely to benefit directly from this project.
What this research studies
You would wear small continuous monitors while hospitalized so the team can track your sleep-wake cycles and activity alongside repeated checks of attention and awareness to record delirium fluctuations. The researchers will combine these continuous measurements to look for timing and patterns that connect sleep or circadian disruptions to sudden changes in delirium symptoms. Some participants will include older adults with Alzheimer’s disease or other dementias to see whether patterns differ in those groups. The work aims to identify modifiable sleep- or rhythm-related factors that could be targeted to prevent or shorten delirium.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could lead to ways to prevent or shorten delirium episodes and reduce related hospital stays and cognitive decline.
How similar studies have gone: Prior trials that tried to improve sleep have produced mixed effects on delirium, so using continuous monitoring to link sleep/circadian changes to delirium is a relatively new approach.
Where this research is happening
-
Northwestern University
Chicago, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Kimchi, Eyal Yaacov — Northwestern University
- Study coordinator: Kimchi, Eyal Yaacov
Related research
Other NIH-funded projects on the same topics.
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READI-SET-GO: Improving Delirium Screening for Hospitalized Older Adults
A hospital-based program tests how well routine nurse delirium screening using UB-CAM works when integrated into the electronic health record to improve outcomes for older patients.
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Continuous wearable monitor with AI to prevent agitation and delirium in hospitalized older adults
A wearable sensor and AI system will continuously track agitation in older hospital patients to help prevent delirium and protect brain health.
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Low brain changes from anesthesia may signal early Alzheimer's risk
A study at Stanford will look at whether brain responses to anesthesia during surgery reveal early brain changes linked to Alzheimer’s disease and delirium risk in people aged 65 and up.
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Why dementia and sudden confusion (delirium) often happen together
This project looks at brain electrical signals and chemical changes to find why people with dementia sometimes develop sudden confusion called delirium.
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AKI-related delirium after heart surgery
This grant funds research to understand why some people develop delirium after heart surgery when they also have acute kidney injury.
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Lipocalin-2 and delirium after surgery in Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias
A study at Duke University looks at how an inflammatory protein called lipocalin-2 may trigger delirium after surgery, especially in people at risk for Alzheimer’s and related dementias.
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.