Multidimensional associations of physical performance, balance, wellness and daily activities with frailty in older adults with coexisting frailty and diabetes.

Abstract

The coexistence of frailty and type 2 diabetes mellitus in the older population heightens the risk of adverse events. However, research on functional and wellness factors associated with frailty in this population is limited. To investigate the associations of physical performance, functional dependency, physical activity, nutritional status, sleep, self-perceived health and depression with frailty in community-dwelling older adults with coexisting frailty and type 2 diabetes mellitus. Cross-sectional. The study included 123 community-dwelling older adults (73.7 ± 6.0 years) with pre-frailty/frailty and type 2 diabetes mellitus. Physical performance (Short Physical Performance Battery), functional dependency (Barthel Index and Lawton & Brody), physical activity and inactivity (GeneActiv wrist-worn accelerometer), malnutrition risk (Mini Nutritional Assessment), sleep (Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index), self-perceived health (EuroQoL 5-Dimension 3-Level) and depression (Yesavage 15-item-Geriatric-Depression-Scale) were evaluated through personal interviews. Principal component analysis (PCA) was performed to categorize the variables into components, and logistic regressions were used to propose the best-fitted model for each component. The PCA identified four components: (i) physical performance, with gait speed and leg mean velocity as the main variables associated with frailty; (ii) balance, showing significant associations with monopodal balance; (iii) daily activities, with moderate to vigorous physical activity and the Lawton and Brody score as the main variables associated with frailty within this component; and (iv) wellness factors, with nutritional status, self-perceived health and depression score as the primary variables associated with frailty. This research underscores the significance of physical function and daily activities as protective factors against frailty in community-dwelling older adults with coexisting frailty and type 2 diabetes mellitus. The health dimension contributes both protective and risk factors, emphasizing the need for comprehensive assessments in managing frailty in this population. The study adhered to the STROBE checklist. No patient or public contribution.