cornell_assessment_pediatric_delirium: Cornell Assessment for Pediatric Delirium (CAPD)

In cliot: Clinical Indices and Outcomes Tools

Cornell Assessment for Pediatric Delirium (CAPD)

Description

Calculates the CAPD score to screen for delirium in critically ill infants and children. The scale consists of 8 observational items scored from 0 to 4. For items 1-4 (developmental behaviors), higher scores indicate absence of the behavior (reverse scoring is assumed to be done prior to input or user enters points directly). For items 5-8 (symptomatic behaviors), higher scores indicate frequency of the symptom.

Usage

cornell_assessment_pediatric_delirium(q1_eye_contact, q2_purposeful_actions,
                                      q3_aware_surroundings, q4_communicate_needs,
                                      q5_restless, q6_inconsolable,
                                      q7_underactive, q8_response_time)

Arguments

q1_eye_contact	Numeric (0-4). Score for eye contact with caregiver. (0=Always, 4=Never).
q2_purposeful_actions	Numeric (0-4). Score for purposeful actions. (0=Always, 4=Never).
q3_aware_surroundings	Numeric (0-4). Score for awareness of surroundings. (0=Always, 4=Never).
q4_communicate_needs	Numeric (0-4). Score for communicating needs/wants. (0=Always, 4=Never).
q5_restless	Numeric (0-4). Score for restlessness. (0=Never, 4=Always).
q6_inconsolable	Numeric (0-4). Score for being inconsolable. (0=Never, 4=Always).
q7_underactive	Numeric (0-4). Score for being underactive. (0=Never, 4=Always).
q8_response_time	Numeric (0-4). Score for delayed response time. (0=Never, 4=Always).

Value

A list containing:

CAPD_Total_Score	The sum of the 8 item scores (Range 0-32).
Interpretation	Screening result based on the cutoff of 9.

References

Traube C, Silver G, Kearney J, et al. Cornell Assessment of Pediatric Delirium: a valid, rapid, observational tool for screening delirium in the PICU. Crit Care Med. 2014;42(3):656-663. doi:10.1097/CCM.0b013e3182a66b76

Examples

# Example 1: Positive for Delirium
# Child never makes eye contact (4), is always restless (4), score 8 from just two items
# Total = 4+4+0+0+4+0+0+0 = 12
cornell_assessment_pediatric_delirium(4, 4, 0, 0, 4, 0, 0, 0)

# Example 2: Negative for Delirium
# Normal behaviors (0 points each)
cornell_assessment_pediatric_delirium(0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0)

cliot documentation built on Dec. 1, 2025, 1:06 a.m.