Among Spain's healthy elderly 12 months post-ICU, the half that survived lived well

Sacanella et al prospectively observed 230 generally healthy, cognitively intact, highly functional & independently living Spaniards 65 years or older (mean age 75) after urgent admission to a single MICU. About half received mechanical ventilation (54%). Seventy died in-hospital; 48 died within a year, for a one-year survival of 49%. But among the 112 survivors, ~70-80% returned to near-premorbid scores on autonomy and quality of life measures. Mechanical ventilation, older age, and lower premorbid functional status predicted lower one-year survival. Critical Care 2011;15:R105. FULL FREE TEXT