Abstract
Identification of frailty syndrome and its relationship with cardiovascular risk factors among hospitalized elderly people is important, since this may contribute towards broadening of knowledge regarding this association within tertiary-level services. This study aimed to evaluate the cardiovascular risk factors associated with frailty syndrome among hospitalized elderly people. Observational cross-sectional study in a public teaching hospital. The participants were elderly patients admitted to clinical and surgical wards. The cardiovascular risk factors assessed were: body mass index (BMI), waist circumference, systemic arterial hypertension (SAH), blood glucose, total cholesterol, high-density lipoproteins (HDL), low-density lipoproteins (LDL) and triglycerides. To identify frailty syndrome, the method proposed by Fried was used. The data were analyzed through descriptive statistics, chi-square test (P < 0.10) and multinomial logistic regression (P < 0.05). A total of 205 individuals were evaluated. It was found that 26.3% (n = 54) of the elderly people were frail, 51.7% (n = 106) were pre-frail and 22% (n = 45) were non-frail. The preliminary bivariate analysis (P < 0.10) for the regression model showed that frailty was associated with BMI (P = 0.016), LDL cholesterol (P = 0.028) and triglycerides (P = 0.093). However, in the final multivariate model, only overweight remained associated with the pre-frail condition (odds ratio, OR = 0.44; 95% confidence interval, CI = 0.20-0.98; P = 0.045). States of frailty were highly present in the hospital environment. The pre-frail condition was inversely associated with overweight.
Highlights
Frailty among elderly people can be understood as a clinical syndrome
A review indicated that cardiovascular diseases is a factor associated with frailty syndrome, since the prevalence of cardiovascular conditions may range from 25% to 50% among frail elderly people.[5]
In a study involving community-living elderly people in England, it was found that the lowest frailty rate was among those with body mass index (BMI) 25-29.9 kg/m2
Summary
Frailty among elderly people can be understood as a clinical syndrome. It is characterized as a state of increased vulnerability to stressors that results from decreased physiological reserves and imbalances in multiple systems.[1,2]Seeking to increase knowledge regarding this condition has become a worldwide investigative aim for researchers,[3] since frailty may cause higher risk of health problems, hospitalization and mortality, as well as family overload and increased use of healthcare systems.[4]A review indicated that cardiovascular diseases is a factor associated with frailty syndrome, since the prevalence of cardiovascular conditions may range from 25% to 50% among frail elderly people.[5]. Frailty among elderly people can be understood as a clinical syndrome. It is characterized as a state of increased vulnerability to stressors that results from decreased physiological reserves and imbalances in multiple systems.[1,2]. A review indicated that cardiovascular diseases is a factor associated with frailty syndrome, since the prevalence of cardiovascular conditions may range from 25% to 50% among frail elderly people.[5] the association between these conditions is bidirectional[6] and low level chronic inflammation is present in both conditions.[5]. In a study involving community-living elderly people in England, it was found that the lowest frailty rate was among those with body mass index (BMI) 25-29.9 kg/m2. Another population-based study in Great Britain reported higher odds of obesity, high waist circumference, low high-density lipoprotein-cholesterol (HDL) and hypertension among frail elderly men than among non-frail men.[7]
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