Clinical Calculators

ICDSC (Intensive Care Delirium Screening Checklist)

Screens ICU patients for delirium with 8 items (total 0 to 8 points)

1 item left

1. Altered level of consciousness

Choose from observation over the shift or from information over the past 24 hours

Cautions

  • Rate from observation over each shift or from information over the past 24 hours (J-PAD 2014 describes the ICDSC as an assessment of the past 24 hours).
  • Score an item as No (0 points) when there is no sign of it.
  • If the patient is in coma or stupor for most of the period, do not assess that period. No total is shown when the assessment is skipped.
  • The ICDSC is a screening tool, not a diagnosis of delirium. J-PAD 2014 quotes two meta-analyses with a sensitivity of 74 to 80.1% and a specificity of 74.6 to 81.9%. Delirium cannot be ruled out with a score below 4.
  • Patients at RASS -2 or -3 are reported to be easily misjudged as delirious (commentary on CQ22 of J-PAD 2014, in Japanese).
  • Grouping 1 to 3 points as subsyndromal delirium is a scheme described by J-PAD 2014 as used in some settings. The cut point in the original paper is 4 or more.
  • Intended for adult ICU patients. Nurses should be trained in using the tool before they rely on it (commentary on CQ22 of J-PAD 2014).

References

  1. Bergeron N, Dubois MJ, Dumont M, Dial S, Skrobik Y. Intensive Care Delirium Screening Checklist: evaluation of a new screening tool. Intensive Care Med. 2001;27(5):859-864. (original not seen) PMID: 11430542, DOI: 10.1007/s001340100909[Original article]
  2. Committee for the development of Japanese guidelines for the management of Pain, Agitation, and Delirium in intensive care unit, Japanese Society of Intensive Care Medicine. Japanese guidelines for the management of Pain, Agitation, and Delirium in intensive care unit (J-PAD) (in Japanese). J Jpn Soc Intensive Care Med. 2014;21:539-579. (Table 14 (ICDSC); CQ20 to CQ22 and their commentary) https://www.jsicm.org/pdf/2015-J-PAD-guideline.pdf[Guideline]
  3. Banerjee A, Girard TD, Pandharipande P. The complex interplay between delirium, sedation, and early mobility during critical illness: applications in the trauma unit. Curr Opin Anaesthesiol. 2011;24(2):195-201. (Table 1 (the ICDSC, adapted from Bergeron et al.)) DOI: 10.1097/ACO.0b013e3283445382, https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3606927/[Review article]
  4. Ouimet S, Riker R, Bergeron N, Cossette M, Kavanagh B, Skrobik Y. Subsyndromal delirium in the ICU: evidence for a disease spectrum. Intensive Care Med. 2007;33(6):1007-1013. (Abstract (groups by ICDSC score: 0, 1 to 3, 4 or more)) (original not seen) PMID: 17404704, DOI: 10.1007/s00134-007-0618-y[Review article]

Checked on: 2026-11-07

Disclaimer

This calculation is intended to support the judgment of healthcare professionals. Results are for reference only; decisions about diagnosis and treatment must be made by the responsible healthcare professional. The values you enter never leave your device.