Changes in frailty conditions and phenotype components in elderly after hospitalization

Abstract

Objective: describing the changes in frailty conditions over the period of a year after hospital discharge, verifying predictive variables for changes in frailty conditions and frailty phenotype components according to worsening, improving and stable groups. Method: a longitudinal survey carried out with 129 elderly. A structured form for socioeconomic and health data, scales (Geriatric Depression Scale-short form, Katz scale, Lawton and Brody scale) and frailty phenotype according to Fried were used. Descriptive analysis and multinomial logistic regression model (p<0.05) were performed. Results: we found that 56.7% of older adults changed their condition from non-frail to pre-frail, with no changes from non-frail to frail. Deaths were found between frail and pre-frail elderly. In the worsening group, the increase in the number of morbidities was a predictor for exhaustion and/or fatigue, while in the improving group, increased dependence on instrumental activities of daily living was a predictor for weight loss, and reduced scores indicative of depression due to low level of physical activity. Conclusion: a greater percentage of changes from non-frail condition to pre-frail older adults were observed, and health variables were only predictive for frailty phenotype components.