Mnemonic: CONSCIOUS. You can use the 9 features that distinguish delirium from dementia and other similar conditions to help you diagnose delirium.
This is a rough version of the validated short CAM that follows the mnemonic, confusion.
| Feature of Delirium | Evaluating Question | Points |
| Consciousness | Is there a change or altered level of consciousness (ALOC) from the patient’s baseline?. Either decreased (“Clouded” ) or hyperalert? | 1 |
| Onset (acute vs. chronic) | Is the change (alteration) in the level of consciousness acute or sub-acute? | 1 |
| Neuro-psychomotor (Excited or Quiet Delirium) | Is the patient agitated or lethargic? | 1 |
| Speech (coherent vs incoherent) | Is the patient’s speech (i.e. a reflection of his thinking) incoherent? E.g. is he rambling or having irrelevant conversation, unclear or illogical flow of ideas, or unpredictable switching from subject to subject? | 1 |
| Course | Does pt have a fluctuating course (waxing and waning i.e. comes and goes)? | 1 |
| Inattention | Is the patient having difficulty paying attention to what you are saying? E.g. is patient being easily distractible or having difficulty keeping track of what was being said? | 2 |
| Orientation | Is the patient disoriented (and also incoherent as above)? | 1 |
| Unreal auditory and visual perceptions (hallucinations) | Does the patient have perceptual disturbances or hallucinations? | 1 |
| Sleep-wake-cycle | Is the patient’s sleep-wake cycle abnormal? | 1 |