Sudden confusion (delirium) describes a state of sudden confusion and changes in a person’s behaviour and alertness. If the confusion has come on suddenly, you should take the person to your nearest hospital or call 999 for an ambulance.
About sudden confusion (delirium)
Being in a state of confusion means:
- not being able to think clearly or quickly
- feeling disorientated
- struggling to pay attention, make decisions, or remember things
A simple test for confusion is to ask the person their name, age and today's date. This to see if they seem unsure or answer incorrectly.
Symptoms of sudden confusion (delirium)
The symptoms are often worse at night, meaning that a person is awake at night and sleepy during the day.
A person with a delirium can show symptoms including:
- confusion
- distractibility
- rambling speech
- changes in alertness
- agitation (sometimes leading to aggression)
- behavioural changes
- changes in personality, including paranoia
- hallucinations
What to do if someone is showing signs of confusion
If the confusion has come on suddenly, take the person to your nearest hospital or call 999 for an ambulance.
This is especially important if they're showing other signs of illness such as a fever, or their skin or lips are turning blue.
If the person is diabetic
If the person is diabetic, check their blood sugar level, if they have a testing device with them.
You'll need to prick their finger with the device and place the droplet of blood on the testing strip.
Compare the reading with their record of previous results or recorded recommended blood sugar levels. Most people monitoring their diabetes will keep a record of blood sugars and targets.
If the reading is higher than usual, take them to hospital or call 999.
If the reading is low (below 4.0 mmol/L), give them a sugary snack or drink and wait 10 minutes to see if they recover. If they don't, take them to hospital or call 999.
More information about blood sugar and diabetes can be found at:
- Type 1 diabetes
While you wait for the ambulance, you should:
- stay with them, introduce yourself if you need to, reassure them, and remind them where they are at regular intervals
- check the person's medication cupboard, if in their home, and make a note of what drugs they're taking
- ask if any other family members have been unwell, to check whether carbon monoxide poisoning could be a possible cause of the confusion
Common causes of sudden confusion
The most common causes of sudden confusion include:
- a lack of oxygen in the blood (hypoxia) – the cause could be anything from a severe asthma attack to a problem with the lungs or heart
- an infection anywhere in the body, especially in elderly people
- a stroke or TIA (’mini stroke’)
- a low blood sugar level (hypoglycaemia)
- diabetic ketoacidosis, a serious complication of diabetes caused by a lack of insulin in the body
- certain medications, including digoxin, diuretics, steroids, and opiates
- alcohol poisoning or alcohol withdrawal
- drug misuse
This information should give you a better idea of the cause of someone's confusion. It should not be used as a diagnostic tool. Always see your doctor for a proper diagnosis.
It's normal to forget a word, misplace your keys, or have trouble remembering directions once in a while. These kinds of memory slips become more common as you get older. Yet sudden and severe memory loss – such as forgetting your children's names or not knowing where you are -- can signal a more serious problem.
Memory loss can be a sign of Alzheimer's disease and other types of dementia. But when it comes on quickly, it's often because of other things. Many of these causes are treatable.
Here are some things that can lead to sudden memory loss -- and what you can do about them:
Medicines
Many prescription drugs you might take can affect your memory. This is not a full listing, but some of the most common ones include:
- Anxiety: alprazolam (Xanax), chlordiazepoxide (Librium), clonazepam (Klonopin), diazepam (Valium), flurazepam (Dalmane), lorazepam (Ativan)
- Depression or pain: amitriptyline (Elavil), clomipramine (Anafranil), desipramine (Norpramin), doxepin (Sinequan), imipramine (Tofranil), nortriptyline (Aventyl, Pamelor)
- High blood pressure: atenolol (Tenormin), captopril (Capoten), metoprolol (Lopressor, Toprol), propranolol (Inderal), sotalol (Betapace)
- High cholesterol: atorvastatin (Lipitor), fluvastatin (Lescol), lovastatin (Mevacor), pravastatin (Pravachol), rosuvastatin (Crestor), simvastatin (Zocor)
- Pain: fentanyl (Duragesic), hydrocodone (Norco, Vicodin), hydromorphone (Dilaudid, Exalgo), morphine (Astramorph, Avinza), oxycodone (OxyContin, Percocet)
- Seizures:acetazolamide (Diamox), carbamazepine (Tegretol), gabapentin (Neurontin), lamotrigine (Lamictal), pregabalin (Lyrica), valproic acid (Depakote)
- Trouble sleeping:eszopiclone (Lunesta), zaleplon (Sonata), zolpidem (Ambien)
If you take one of these drugs -- or even something not on this list -- and are worried about your memory, ask your doctor if you can switch to something else.
Depression
Your memory and emotions are closely connected. Depression, stress, or anxiety can affect your focus. When you can't focus, you can't remember very well.
If you feel sad or have lost interest in things you once enjoyed, see a mental health professional to get treated. Antidepressants and talk therapy can help with depression.
Vitamin B12 Deficiency
Too little vitamin B12 in your diet can also affect your memory. This nutrient helps your body use energy from food, and it protects nerve cells so you can think clearly.
Your body doesn't make vitamin B12. You get it from foods such as meat, fish, milk, cheese, and eggs. Some vegans might not get enough vitamin B12 from diet alone. If you're low in this vitamin, ask your doctor about taking a supplement.
In large amounts, alcohol makes it harder to form new memories or store information you've learned. If you binge drink -- have many drinks in a short time -- you may sometimes “black out.” You can forget entire chunks of time. If you keep drinking too much, memory loss can become permanent. A fall, car accident, or other hard knock to the head can leave you unable to remember people or events. Even if the injury doesn't knock you unconscious, it can lead to memory loss. Depending on how severe the hit to your head was, the memory issues might go away or be permanent. A stroke happens when a blockage or weak area in a blood vessel cuts off blood flow to part of your brain. Without oxygen-rich blood, brain cells start to die. A stroke can cause short-term or long-term memory loss. You might forget things you've learned or get easily confused. To protect your blood vessels and prevent more strokes: Amnesia is when you suddenly can't remember things about yourself or your life. It can be caused by injury or damage to your brain. “Transient global amnesia” is a type of memory loss where you suddenly forget where you are or what's happened recently. You might ask the same questions over and over to get your bearings. This type of amnesia can happen after: Transient global amnesia is rare and doesn't need to be treated. It should get better on its own. Damage to the brain from a tumor or its treatments can affect memory. Chemotherapy, surgery, and radiation can affect your ability to think clearly. Cancer can also make you so tired that you can't think straight. Take care of yourself while you're being treated for cancer. Eat well and get plenty of rest to save energy and keep your memory.Alcohol Abuse
Head Injuries
Strokes
Amnesia
Brain Tumors
The thyroid gland in your neck produces hormones that control how quickly your body burns food for energy. When your thyroid makes too little of its hormones -- called hypothyroidism -- your whole body slows down. You can feel tired, depressed, and forgetful. Your doctor will do a blood test to check your thyroid hormone levels. If they're low, you'll get thyroid hormone pills. If you're worried about memory loss, see your doctor. They will ask questions about your symptoms and do tests to find out what's behind the problem. Many causes of memory loss can be treated.Thyroid Problems
What To Do
SOURCES: AARP: "10 Drugs That May Cause Memory Loss." American Brain Tumor Association: "Memory Loss." American Stroke Association: "Cognitive Challenges After Stroke." BrightFocus Foundation: "'Is It Something I'm Taking?' Medications That Can Mimic Dementia." Harvard Medical School: "7 common causes of forgetfulness." Mayo Clinic: "Amnesia Causes." "Memory loss: When to seek help." "Transient global amnesia definition." National Health Service: "Underactive thyroid (hypothyroidism)." "Vitamins and minerals -- B vitamins and folic acid." National Institute on Aging: "Differences between mild forgetfulness and more serious memory loss." "Serious memory problems -- causes and treatments."Show Sources
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