Frailty of the elderly with chronic kidney disease.

A single-center observational study.

Abstract

Introduction: Frailty in the elderly (AM) increases morbidity and mortality. This condition is highly prevalent in Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) and, together with frailty, greatly affects physical, cognitive, and emotional capacity. The study aimed to determine frailty in older adults with CKD in a reference center in Cuenca-Ecuador.

Methods: The present observational study was conducted at the “José Carrasco Arteaga” Hospital from September 2020 to April 2021. Older adults with a diagnosis of CKD were included; patients with disabilities, severe cognitive impairment, and those with palliative care were excluded. The direct source variables are demographic, clinical, physical activity, functional capacity, mood, mental state, and frailty. The sample was probabilistic. The Chi² test is used to compare percentages.

Results: 79 cases are analyzed. The MA had 38% frailty, 36.7% were pre-frail, and 25.3% were robust. A more significant proportion of 'young' AM was observed in patients classified as robust. A more substantial proportion of robust patients were receiving clinical treatment, while patients in the hemodialysis program were classified as frail. The most significant proportion of robust patients had mild degrees of renal failure, while frail patients were classified as CKD grades 4 and 5. Physical activity was active primarily in robust patients and mostly passive in patients with frailty.

Conclusion: there is a high prevalence of frailty in this population group, especially in women and those between 75 and 85 years old. The results suggest that CKD in older adults is associated with a higher risk of frailty, dependence, and comorbidities, which underlines the importance of implementing multidisciplinary and personalized interventions to improve the quality of life and prognosis of these patients.