Abstract P128: Prevalence Of Pre-frailty And Frailty In The Physical Activity Daily (PAD) Trial

Abstract

Introduction: Frailty is a multidimensional, geriatric syndrome characterized by decreased physiologic reserve and resistance to stressors. Frailty is associated with increased mortality among cardiac patients; however, data on patients with peripheral arterial disease (PAD) are limited. Purpose: The purpose of this observational study was to identify the prevalence of unique physical frailty clusters in a sedentary, PAD cohort in the Physical Activity Daily (PAD) Trial. Methods: This study utilized baseline information from the Physical Activity Daily (PAD) Trial (2014 – 2021). Sedentary adults with documented PAD, defined as ankle-brachial index [ABI] < 0.9, within the University of Michigan and University of Alabama at Birmingham health systems were enrolled. We clustered three PAD-relevant frailty phenotypes using the Fried’s frailty index —1) self-reported exhaustion (SRE), 2) weakness (WN), and 3) slow walking speed (SWS)—and observed the prevalence of pre-frailty (1-2 characteristics) and frailty (3 characteristics) in the PAD cohort. Results: A total of 106 participants (age, 66.9 [8.4] years; female 37 [34.9%]; White 89 [84.8%]) were assessed for unique frailty clusters. Of the 106, 34.9% were characterized as robust/non-frail, 61.3% were pre-frail and 3.7% were frail. Overall, the most common phenotype component among this PAD cohort was WN (44.3%). Among pre-frail and frail participants, WN (30.4%) was the single-most occurring phenotype followed by SRE (23.2%) and SWS (5.8%). Additionally, WN + SWS (18.9%) was the most prevalent pre-frailty cluster followed by SRE + WN (13.0%) and SRE + SWS (2.9%). Conclusions: In this cohort of participants with PAD, pre-frailty was the most common accounting for 61.3%. Given the high number of adults who transition from pre-frailty to frailty, efforts to identify the clustering of phenotypes in PAD patients who are pre-frail is warranted. The implementation of rehabilitative strategies within this population is of importance to prevent the development of pre-frailty into frailty.