Characteristics of frail patients in a geriatric-HIV program: The experience of an urban academic center at one year follow-up

Abstract

Introduction: Frailty syndrome has not been explored in depth in elderly HIV-infected patients. Methods: As of December 2009, a total of 60 patients (out of 160 patients > 60 years) were screened and 20 patients were transferred to our newly created Geriatrics-HIV program. We divided this group of already "frail patients" in three different subgroups; the mildly, moderately and the very frail groups based on the number of domains failed during the initial geriatrics screening. Results: The percentages of mildly, moderately, and severely frail elderly patients in our cohort were 20% 50% and 30% respectively. The most common comorbidities found were HTN (60%), and history of AIDS-related opportunistic infections (40%). Smoking was highly prevalent in all groups. The average number of medications used per patient was 8.1 with 65% of patients being compliant with their regimens. Discussion: We found that cognitive impairment, presence of comorbidities, high number of medications used, and past history of any opportunistic infection are factors prevalent in severely frail patients infected with HIV in our cohort. The significance of these factors in development and progression of frailty syndrome in HIV-positive patients needs to be elucidated. © The Author(s) 2011.