E-Poster Presentation 30th Australian and New Zealand Bone and Mineral Society Annual Scientific Meeting 2020

Prevalence of frailty in older men and women: cross-sectional data from the Geelong Osteoporosis Study (#120)

Monica C. Tembo 1 , Kara L. Holloway-Kew 1 , Sophia X. Sui 1 , Trisha Dunning 1 , Adrian C.H. Low 2 , Shi-Jynn Yong 2 , Boon L. Ng 2 , Sharon L. Brennan-Olsen 1 3 4 , Lana J. Williams 1 , Mark A. Kotowicz 1 2 , Julie A. Pasco 1 2
  1. Deakin University, Geelong, VICTORIA, Australia
  2. Barwon Health, Geelong, Victoria, Australia
  3. Australian Institute for Musculoskeletal Science (AIMSS), The University of Melbourne, St Albans, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
  4. Melbourne Medical School- Western Campus, The University of Melbourne,St Albans, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

Objectives

We aimed to determine the prevalence of frailty in a population-based sample of older adults (ages ≥60yr) and examine the relationship between frailty and comorbid conditions.

Methods

Men (n=347) and women (n=360) were from the Geelong Osteoporosis Study (GOS). A modified Fried frailty phenotype identified frailty, including unintentional weight loss, weakness, low physical activity, exhaustion and slowness; frail ≥3 items and pre-frail 1-2 items. Prevalence estimates were standardised to the 2011 Australian population. Kruskal-Wallis test and chi-square test identified intergroup differences. Binary logistic regression models, using the robust group as referent, adjusted for age and body mass index (BMI) were constructed to investigate associations between frailty groups and comorbidities.

Results

For women, mean standardised prevalence estimates were 18.3% (14.1-22.5) for frail, 54.1% (47.3-60.8) pre-frail and 22.9% (18.9-26.8) robust; for men estimates were 13.1% (9.8-16.3), 47.8% (42.0-53.6) and 27.3% (22.7-31.8) respectively. Women who were frail were older, shorter, tended to have a higher BMI and used more medications than other groups. Compared to robust women, those who were frail were more likely to have cardio-metabolic (OR 3.5 (95%CI 0.7-20.0)), pulmonary (3.5 (1.5-8.4)) and musculoskeletal (10.1 (2.1-48.0)) conditions. Frail men were older, had a higher BMI and tended to be from a lower SES. Frail men were more likely to have musculoskeletal conditions (5.8 (2.8-12.3)) compared to robust men. No other associations were observed.

Conclusion

Approximately half of adults aged ≥60yr were pre-frail, and 14.1-22.5% of women and 9.8-16.3% of men were frail. Frailty was associated with musculoskeletal conditions for both sexes; however, associations with cardio-metabolic and pulmonary comorbidities were evident in women only. These observations have important implications as they highlight areas of possible interventions for decreasing frailty progression, given the association between frailty and comorbid conditions in the context of an ageing population.