Prevalencia de síndrome de fragilidad en adultos mayores de 70 años en Primer Nivel de Atención

Abstract

Introduction: Frailty is characterized by decreased strength, endurance, and physiological functions, which in addition to natural deterioration in elder population can contribute to the risk of adverse effects on their health. Objective: To determine the prevalence of frailty syndrome in adults over 70 years of age in the Family Medicine Unit (UMF) number 78, of the Instituto Mexicano del Seguro Social (IMSS), Guadalajara, Jalisco. Material and methods: A non-analytical cross-sectional study was conducted, probabilistic sampling was carried out for convenience, which included adult patients over 70 years of age with comorbidities, who attended the family medicine consultation services at UMF No. 78, in a one month period, different previously validates instruments were applied to determine frailty syndrome data in the elderly such as the FRAIL scale, Edmonton scale and Karnofsky's functional assessment, as well as the data collection card. The corresponding statistical analysis was performed with the SPSS v.19 software. For descriptive statistics, frequencies and proportions in qualitative variables were used; in the quantitative variables mean, median, mode and standard deviation. Results: From a total sample of 372 patients, it was found that under de Edmonton scale the most frequent category was «Non-fragile» with 36.02%; according to the FRAIL scale assessment, the prevailing category was «Fragile» with 45.97%. According to Karnofsky's functional assessment, 33.06% of the patients showed a score of 70. There is a statistically significant agreement between the Edmonton and FRAIL scales. Conclusions: It is concluded that there is a high prevalence of frail older adults; this study seeks to draw attention to the importance of the evaluation of frailty in every geriatric patient, in order to detect it in time and avoid the development of dependence and disability. It is essential the intervention of the family doctor from the first consultation of the elderly in order to identify the fragility of the patient and prevent the consequences. A greater number of studies on the subject is necessary in order to know the situation of these patients. (English) [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]