Functional Recovery After Recurrent Critical Illness in an Older Adult

Prolonged and recurrent critical illness presents major clinical challenges in older adults. We report a 71-year-old woman with diabetes and recurrent ischemic stroke who experienced 7 ICU admissions over 2 years, including 8 intubations, 3 tracheostomies, PEG placement and removal, recurrent aspiration pneumonias, and spontaneous pneumothorax. Despite repeated respiratory failure and invasive interventions, structured weaning protocols, swallowing rehabilitation, and individualized nutritional support enabled repeated decannulation and recovery of oral intake. At final follow-up, she was living at home with preserved cognition, spontaneous breathing, and safe oral feeding without assistive devices. This case illustrates that even frail geriatric patients with recurrent ICU admissions may achieve meaningful functional recovery when multidisciplinary care and carefully individualized decannulation and rehabilitation strategies are applied.