Hospital Frailty Risk Score predicts adverse events in older patients with hip fractures after surgery: Analysis of a nationwide inpatient database in Japan

Comparative clinical frailty scale and hospital frailty risk score in identifying frailty and predicting mid-term outcomes in older patients with acute coronary syndrome: a multicenter cohort study in Vietnam

BACKGROUND

We aimed to compare the agreement between two common frailty assessment tools, Clinical Frailty Scale (CFS) and Hospital Frailty Risk Score (HFRS), and their ability to predict mid-term adverse outcomes in older patients admitted with acute coronary syndrome (ACS).

METHODS

We conducted a prospective analysis of patients aged ≥ 60 admitted with ACS at multiple centers in Vietnam between July 2022 and June 2023. A cross-tabulation method was used to describe the correlation between CFS and HFRS. To test the predictive accuracy of HFRS for identifying patients with frailty according to CFS, we evaluated the area under the curves of receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis. Youden J index was used to identify a new optimal probability threshold for HFRS. We employed Cox regression models to investigate the association between frailty assessed by CFS, HFRS (using both old and new cut-offs), and 9-month mortality.

RESULTS

We included 504 older patients admitted with ACS (median age 72.7 years; male: 59.9%). The correlation between CFS and HFRS was fair (AUC = 0.787, p < 0.010). HFRS had a sensitivity of 39.7% and a specificity of 79.2% to detect frailty based on CFS classification. The new optimal probability threshold of HFRS (≥ 1.15 points) improved the instrument's performance with a significantly higher sensitivity of 90.2%. While frailty categorized by HFRS with the original cut-off did not impact mid-term all-cause and cardiovascular mortality, frailty according to CFS and HFRS with the new threshold was shown to be a predictor of mid-term all-cause and cardiovascular mortality (HR = 4.48, p < 0.001 vs. HR = 2.29, p = 0.001; HR = 5.19, p < 0.001 vs. HR = 1.99, p = 0.020).

CONCLUSIONS

Although a fair correlation existed between the CFS and the HFRS in older patients with ACS, HFRS demonstrated limited predictive validity for mid-term mortality. We advocate for a revised cutoff (HFRS ≥ 1.15 points) to enhance its sensitivity and predictive accuracy. Future research should prioritize the integration of additional clinical biomarkers and conducting longitudinal studies to assess the efficacy of targeted interventions informed by frailty scores, ultimately striving to improve outcomes in this vulnerable population.

Impact of Delayed Postoperative Rehabilitation on Patients with Valvular Heart Disease: A Retrospective Cohort Study

Objectives

Delayed initiation of postoperative rehabilitation may be detrimental for improving everyday activities in postoperative patients with valvular heart disease. Rehabilitation is essential for postoperative valvular heart disease; however, the effective starting time of rehabilitation is unknown. This study aimed to investigate whether a delay in postoperative rehabilitation affects outcomes in patients after waiting for surgery for valvular heart disease.

Methods

Data from the JMDC database were extracted for 4330 patients diagnosed with valvular heart disease and who underwent surgery within 5 days of admission. Patient characteristics were compared between the usual rehabilitation group (started rehabilitation within 2 days postoperatively) and the delayed rehabilitation group (started rehabilitation at 3-5 days postoperatively). The primary outcome was hospitalization-associated disability (HAD); that is, the proportion of patients who showed a decline in the Barthel Index during hospitalization. Barthel Index at discharge, pulmonary complications following hospitalization, and postoperative complications were the secondary outcomes. Outcomes were compared in the usual and delayed rehabilitation groups after propensity score matching.

Results

Of the 4330 patients, 3845 patients were assigned to the usual rehabilitation group, and 485 patients were assigned to the delayed rehabilitation group. After propensity score matching, statistical analysis was performed on the usual and delayed rehabilitation groups, which each contained 418 patients. The delayed rehabilitation group had significantly higher rates of HAD (10.5% vs 8.1%) and respiratory complications (14.8% vs 11.2%) than the usual rehabilitation group.

Conclusions

Delayed postoperative rehabilitation may be associated with poor prognosis in patients with valvular heart disease.

Impact of Frailty Risk on Functional Outcome after Aneurysmal Subarachnoid Hemorrhage: A Historical Cohort Study

We evaluated the utility of the Hospital Frailty Risk Score (HFRS) as a predictor of adverse events post-hospitalization in a retrospective analysis of patients undergoing neurosurgical procedures due to aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH). This historical cohort study analyzed the data of patients hospitalized with aneurysmal SAH (n = 1,343) between April 2014 and August 2020 who were registered in the JMDC database. We used HFRS to classify the patients into the low-frailty risk group (HFRS < 5) and high-frailty risk group (HFRS ≥ 5). The primary outcome was a modified Rankin Scale (mRS) score of 0-2 points at discharge. Of 1,343 patients, 1,001 (74.5%) and 342 (25.5%) were in the low- and high-frailty risk groups, respectively. A high-frailty risk was negatively associated with a mRS score of 0-2 at discharge (high-frailty risk group: odds ratio 0.4; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.3-0.6) and home discharge (high-frailty risk group: odds ratio 0.5; 95% CI: 0.4-0.7). A high-frailty risk was negatively associated with Barthel Index gain (high-frailty risk group: coefficient -10.4, 95% CI: -14.7 to -6.2) and had a longer length of stay (high-frailty risk group: coefficient 8.4, 95% CI: 5.1-11.7). HFRS could predict adverse outcomes during hospitalization of aneurysmal SAH patients.

Anesthesia Management of Hip Fracture Surgery in Geriatric Patients: A Review

Hip fractures are increasingly prominent concerns in healthcare, especially in light of a growing elderly population. These fractures contribute to mortality and morbidity in the elderly. Many hip fractures require emergent surgical intervention and may have consequences of serious postoperative complications. Multidisciplinary approaches of management have been utilized to optimize care and improve patient outcomes. Due to the myriad of multi-organ system comorbidities that are increasingly prevalent in the geriatric population, anesthetic management proves to be difficult to standardize. Enhanced Recovery After Surgery (ERAS) protocols have shown benefits for optimizing patient outcomes by focusing on premedication, nutritional support, and pain management; however, specific anesthetic management techniques are not discussed. This literature review aims to discuss ways to optimize hip fracture management in geriatric patients through effective preoperative evaluation, anesthetic considerations, and postoperative optimization and care. A review of currently available guidelines may help determine the optimal management for hip fractures in geriatric patients and improve immediate and lasting postoperative outcomes.

Hospitalization-associated disability prediction using Hospital Frailty Risk Score in older patients undergoing pancreatectomy

PURPOSE

Frailty and hospitalization-associated disabilities (HAD) are geriatric conditions that should be managed in older patients undergoing pancreatectomy. The Hospital Frailty Risk Score (HFRS) can evaluate frailty based on medical records and could predict postoperative activities of daily living (ADL) decline. This study aimed to investigate whether HFRS affects the postoperative incidence of HAD in older patients who underwent pancreatectomy.

METHODS

This retrospective, observational study used data from a nationwide hospital-based database. We included consecutive patients aged ≥ 65 years who were diagnosed with pancreatic cancer (International Statistical Classification of Diseases, 10th revision code C25) and underwent curative pancreatectomy between April 2014 and August 2020. We evaluated preoperative frailty using HFRS. The primary outcome was HAD following pancreatectomy. Logistic regression analysis was performed for analyzing the impact of frailty on HAD following pancreatectomy.

RESULTS

We included 671 patients for the analysis (mean age 74.3 ± 5.6, male 54.8%). The prevalence of intermediate and high risk of frailty with HFRS ≥ 5 was 2.7%. The incidence of HAD was significantly higher in the intermediate- and high-risk groups compared to that in the low-risk group (33.3% vs. 8.4%, p < 0.001). Logistic regression analysis demonstrated that intermediate and high risks of frailty increased the likelihood of HAD (odds ratio, 3.55; 95% confidence interval: 1.12-11.2).

CONCLUSIONS

The risk of frailty evaluated using the HFRS increased the likelihood of developing HAD in older patients undergoing pancreatectomy. Future research on effective perioperative interventions for preventing postoperative HAD and enhancing postoperative ADL recovery is warranted.

Comparative Analysis of Frailty Scores for Predicting Adverse Outcomes in Hip Fracture Patients: Insights from the United States National Inpatient Sample

The aim of the current investigation was to compare the ability of several frailty scores to predict adverse outcomes in hip fracture patients. All adult patients (18 years or older) who suffered a hip fracture due to a fall and underwent surgical fixation were extracted from the 2019 National Inpatient Sample (NIS) Database. A combination of logistic regression and bootstrapping was used to compare the predictive ability of the Orthopedic Frailty Score (OFS), the Nottingham Hip Fracture Score (NHFS), the 11-factor modified Frailty Index (11-mFI) and 5-factor (5-mFI) modified Frailty Index, as well as the Johns Hopkins Frailty Indicator. A total of 227,850 patients were extracted from the NIS. In the prediction of in-hospital mortality and failure-to-rescue (FTR), the OFS surpassed all other frailty measures, approaching an acceptable predictive ability for mortality [AUC (95% CI): 0.69 (0.67-0.72)] and achieving an acceptable predictive ability for FTR [AUC (95% CI): 0.70 (0.67-0.72)]. The NHFS demonstrated the highest predictive ability for predicting any complication [AUC (95% CI): 0.62 (0.62-0.63)]. The 11-mFI exhibited the highest predictive ability for cardiovascular complications [AUC (95% CI): 0.66 (0.64-0.67)] and the NHFS achieved the highest predictive ability for delirium [AUC (95% CI): 0.69 (0.68-0.70)]. No score succeeded in effectively predicting venous thromboembolism or infections. In summary, the investigated frailty scores were most effective in predicting in-hospital mortality and failure-to-rescue; however, they struggled to predict complications.

Prevalence of frailty according to the Hospital Frailty Risk Score and related factors in older patients with acute coronary syndromes in Vietnam

OBJECTIVES

(1) To investigate the prevalence of frailty defined by the Hospital Frailty Risk Score (HFRS), a new scale for assessing frailty, in older patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS); (2) To identify associations between frailty and the prescriptions of cardiovascular medications, percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) and in-hospital adverse outcomes.

METHODS

An observational study was conducted in patients aged older than 60 years with ACS at Thong Nhat Hospital from August to December 2022. The Hospital Frailty Risk Score is retrospectively calculated for all participants based on ICD-10 codes, and those with HFRS scores ≥5 were defined as frail. Logistic regression models were applied to examine the relationship between frailty and the study outcomes.

RESULTS

There were 511 participants in the study. The median age was 72.7, 60% were male and 29% were frail. Frailty was associated with lower odds of beta-blocker use at admission (OR .49 95% CI .25-.94), treatment with PCI during hospitalisation (OR .48, 95% CI .30-.75), but did not show an association with prescriptions of cardiovascular drugs at discharge. Frailty was significantly associated with increased odds of adverse outcomes, including major bleeding (OR 4.07, 95% CI1.73-9.54), hospital-acquired pneumonia (OR 2.55, 95% CI 1.20-5.42), all-cause in-hospital mortality (OR 3.14, 95% CI 1.37-7.20) and non-cardiovascular in-hospital mortality (OR 10.73, 95% CI 1.93-59.55).

CONCLUSIONS

The HFRS was an effective tool for stratifying frailty and predicting adverse health outcomes in older patients with ACS. Further research is needed to compare the HFRS with other frailty assessment tools in this population.

The impact of frailty as a critical mediator causing postoperative neurocognitive disorders in postoperative cardiac patients

Frailty is prevalent in elderly cardiac patients and may be a critical predictor of post-operative neurocognitive disorders (PND). The aim of this review was to demonstrate the correlation of frailty with PND in postsurgical elder patients. A review of published literature and bibliometric analysis was undertaken. Electronic databases from 2009 to 2022 were searched to identify articles that evaluated the relationship between frailty and PND in aging populations. Demographic data, type of surgery performed, frailty measurement, and impact of frailty on PND were extracted from the selected studies. The quality of the studies and risk of bias were assessed by the Newcastle-Ottawa Quality Assessment Scale, and the included articles were assessed as medium to high quality. Eighty-one studies were selected for the Bibliometric review in terms of research trends and hotpots. Additionally, 35 observational studies (prospective and retrospective cohorts) were selected for this review. The mean age ranged from 63 to 84 years and included patients undergoing cardiac, orthopedic, and other surgeries who had cardiac symptoms. Regardless of how frailty was measured, the strongest evidence in terms of numbers of studies, consistency of results, and study quality was for associations between frailty and PND. This analysis found a steadily growing focus on frailty and PND research in cardiac and other patients. The observational studies account for the majority of this area, and frailty occurred in the older cardiac patients over 60 years of age, and pre-screening of frailty can be predictive of PND and mortality.

Impact of Poor Oral Health Status on Swallowing Function Improvement in Older Dysphagic Patients

Background This study aimed to explore the relationship between poor oral health status and improvement in swallowing function in older patients with dysphagia across various clinical settings, including acute and post-acute care environments. Methods This retrospective cohort study encompassed patients aged 65 years and older with dysphagia. Oral health status was assessed using the oral health assessment tool (OHAT) or the revised oral assessment guide (ROAG). In this study, an OHAT score of ≥3 or an ROAG score of ≥13 indicated poor oral health status. The primary outcome measured was the change in the food intake level scale (FILS) score, which reflects swallowing function, during the observation period. The association between changes in FILS score and poor oral health status was analyzed using a multivariable linear regression model. Results The study included 361 older patients with dysphagia (mean age 82.7 ± 7.7 years; 47.3% male), of whom 82.5% had poor oral health. A negative association was found between poor oral health status and improvement in FILS score at the endpoint (partial regression coefficient: -0.523, 95% confidence interval: -0.99 to -0.06, P=0.026). Conclusions Our findings underscore the negative impact of poor oral health status on the improvement of swallowing function and emphasize the importance of oral health interventions for older patients. Further study on oral health interventions' effects on improving swallowing function in older patients with dysphagia is warranted.

Frailty and post-operative delirium influence on functional status in patients with hip fracture: the GIOG 2.0 study

BACKGROUND

This study analyzes the effect of frailty and Post-Operative Delirium (POD) on the functional status at hospital discharge and at 4-month follow-up in patients with hip fracture (HF).

METHODS

Multicenter prospective observational study of older patients with HF admitted to 12 Italian Orthogeriatric centers (July 2019-August 2022). POD was assessed using the 4AT. A 26-item Frailty Index (FI) was created using data collected on admission. The outcome measures were Cumulated Ambulation Score (CAS) ≤ 2 at discharge and a telephone-administered CAS ≤ 2 after 4 months. Poisson regression models were used to assess the effect of frailty and POD on outcomes.

RESULTS

984 patients (median age 84 years, IQR = 79-89) were recruited: 480 (48.7%) were frail at admission, 311 (31.6%) developed POD, and 158 (15.6%) had both frailty and POD. In a robust Poisson regression, frailty alone (Relative Risk, RR = 1.56, 95% Confidence Intervals, CI 1.19-2.04, p = 0.001) and its combination with POD (RR = 2.57, 95% CI 2.02-3.26, p < 0.001) were associated with poor functional status at discharge. At 4-month follow-up, the combination of frailty with POD (RR 3.65, 95% CI 1.85-7.2, p < 0.001) increased the risk of poor outcome more than frailty alone (RR 2.38, 95% CI 1.21-4.66, p < 0.001).

CONCLUSIONS

POD development exacerbates the negative effect that frailty exerts on functional outcomes in HF patients.

Validation and updating of the Older Person's Emergency Risk Assessment (OPERA) score to predict outcomes for hip fracture patients

INTRODUCTION

Hip fractures are associated with significant morbidity and mortality in older people. Accurate risk stratification is important for planning of care, informed decision-making and communication with patients and relatives. The Older Persons' Emergency Risk Assessment (OPERA) score is a risk stratification score for older people admitted to hospital. Our aims were to validate OPERA in hip fracture patients, update the score and compare performance with the Nottingham Hip Fracture Score (NHFS).

METHODS

This dual-centre 3-year observational study (2016-2018) included acutely admitted hip fracture patients managed surgically aged ⩾65 years. The primary outcome was 30-day mortality. Secondary outcomes included residence at 120 days and 1-year mortality. Model performance was assessed using area under the curve (AUC) analysis and Brier scores (discrimination) and calibration curves. The OPERA score was updated using regression analysis with additional independent predictors and validated using bootstrap analysis.

RESULTS

2142 patients (median age 86 [80-91] years) were included with a 30-day mortality of 5.2% and a 1-year mortality of 31.4%. 30-day mortality AUC for OPERA was 0.75 (95% CI, 0.73-0.77) and for NHFS 0.68 (0.65-0.70). For 1-year mortality AUC for OPERA was 0.74 (0.73-0.75) and for NHFS 0.70 (0.69-0.71). The OPERA Score was updated to Hip-OPERA, including ASA grade. Hip-OPERA demonstrated an AUC for 30-day mortality of 0.77 (0.73-0.81) and an AUC for 1-year mortality of 0.76 (0.75-0.77). AUC for new residential care status at 120 days was 0.79 (0.78-0.80).

CONCLUSIONS

Hip-OPERA demonstrated superior discrimination to the NHFS and OPERA for 30-day mortality, 1-year mortality and residence at 120 days following hip fracture. External validation is desirable.

All-Cause Readmission or Potentially Avoidable Readmission: Which Is More Predictable Using Frailty, Comorbidities, and ADL?

Background and Objectives

Readmission-related health care reforms have shifted their focus from all-cause readmissions (ACR) to potentially avoidable readmissions (PAR). However, little is known about the utility of analytic tools from administrative data in predicting PAR. This study determined whether 30-day ACR or 30-day PAR is more predictable using tools that assess frailty, comorbidities, and activities of daily living (ADL) from administrative data.

Research Design and Methods

This retrospective cohort study was conducted at a large general acute care hospital in Tokyo, Japan. We analyzed patients aged ≥70 years who had been admitted to and discharged from the subject hospital between July 2016 and February 2021. Using administrative data, we assessed each patient's Hospital Frailty Risk Score, Charlson Comorbidity Index, and Barthel Index on admission. To determine the influence of each tool on readmission predictions, we constructed logistic regression models with different combinations of independent variables for predicting unplanned ACR and PAR within 30 days of discharge.

Results

Among 16 313 study patients, 4.1% experienced 30-day ACR and 1.8% experienced 30-day PAR. The full model (including sex, age, annual household income, frailty, comorbidities, and ADL as independent variables) for 30-day PAR showed better discrimination (C-statistic: 0.79, 95% confidence interval: 0.77-0.82) than the full model for 30-day ACR (0.73, 0.71-0.75). The other prediction models for 30-day PAR also had consistently better discrimination than their corresponding models for 30-day ACR.

Discussion and Implications

PAR is more predictable than ACR when using tools that assess frailty, comorbidities, and ADL from administrative data. Our PAR prediction model may contribute to the accurate identification of at-risk patients in clinical settings who would benefit from transitional care interventions.

The Hospital Frailty Risk Score Predicts Poor Prognoses in Middle-Aged and Older Patients With Acute Pancreatitis: A Nationwide Retrospective Cohort Study in Japan

OBJECTIVES

Frailty risk may be associated with poor prognoses in acute pancreatitis patients. However, this has not been shown with adjustments for prognosis-related factors. This study aimed to determine whether frailty risk is associated with poor prognoses in acute pancreatitis patients, even after adjusting for prognosis-related factors.

METHODS

The study included 7001 middle-aged and older patients (mean age, 66.2 ± 14.5 years, 65.3% male) 40 years or older who were registered in a Japanese nationwide database. Frailty risk was defined as a Hospital Frailty Risk Score ≥5 points. Outcomes were 30-day and in-hospital mortality, length of stay, and 30-day readmission rate.

RESULTS

Frailty risk was independently positively associated with 30-day mortality (odds ratio [OR], 1.847; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.118-3.051) and in-hospital mortality (OR, 2.504; 95% CI, 1.677-3.739) after adjustment for acute pancreatitis severity and patient characteristics. In addition, frailty risk was positively associated with a longer length of stay (coefficient, 11.393; 95% CI, 9.631-13.154). However, no association was found between frailty risk and the 30-day readmission rate (OR, 1.092; 95% CI, 0.793-1.504).

CONCLUSIONS

Our findings highlight the importance of rapid and automated frailty risk assessment using the Hospital Frailty Risk Score for the early identification of high-risk acute pancreatitis patients.

Early physical rehabilitation effectiveness in frail older patients hospitalized for community-acquired pneumonia: analysis of a nationwide database in Japan

BACKGROUND

Frailty is a significant predictor of prognosis in older patients with community-acquired pneumonia (CAP). No effective therapy has been reported in frail patients with CAP, with frailty determined using the Hospital Frailty Risk Score (HFRS).

AIMS

To investigate whether early physical rehabilitation intervention would effectively minimize adverse outcomes in frail older patients (determined using the HFRS) hospitalized for CAP.

METHODS

This retrospective cohort analysis involved patients with CAP aged ≥ 65 years enrolled in the Japanese Diagnostic Procedure Combination Database between 2014 and 2020 and assessed as being frail. We compared 30-day mortality and readmission rates for patients who did and who did not receive physical rehabilitation within three days of admission and evaluated the association between outcomes and receiving early physical rehabilitation using Cox regression models and inverse probability weighting (IPW) for sensitivity analysis.

RESULTS

The analysis involved 31,133 frail older patients hospitalized for CAP (mean age 84.3 ± 6.3 years; females, 49.1%), including 11,515 (37.0%) who received early physical rehabilitation. Cox regression analysis showed that early physical rehabilitation intervention was inversely associated with 30-day mortality and readmission rates. The IPW model also showed similar results.

DISCUSSION

Early physical rehabilitation was associated with reduced risks of 30-day mortality, overall in-hospital mortality, and 30-day readmission rates in frail older patients with CAP.

CONCLUSIONS

Early physical rehabilitation in frail older patients hospitalized for CAP may improve outcomes. This finding highlights the importance of simultaneously introducing the HFRS and early physical rehabilitation intervention into clinical practice for frail older patients with CAP.

Frailty, length of stay and cost in hip fracture patients

A hip fracture causes high morbidity and mortality. Frailty is associated with adverse outcomes and increased costs. Frailty measured using the Hospital Frailty Risk Score (HFRS) is associated with higher costs and adverse outcomes. HFRS is useful as a fuss-free frailty measurement in the management of older adults with hip fractures.

INTRODUCTION

Hip fractures account for an increasing number of hospital admissions around the world and are associated with high rates of morbidity and mortality. Frailty is increasingly recognized to be associated with adverse outcomes and increased costs. The purpose of this study is to determine the association of the Hospital Frailty Risk Score (HFRS) with the healthcare cost and outcomes in older adults who present with a hip fracture.

METHODS

A retrospective analysis was performed on 1014 patients ≥ 60 years who presented with a hip fracture between January 2016 to June 2020. Each patient was classified into HFRS low, intermediate or high frailty cohorts. Demographics, hip fracture type, comorbidities, Charlson Comorbidity Index (CCI), American Society of Anesthesiologist score (ASA), costs, length of stay, time to surgery, complications, readmission rate and mortality were compared between the cohorts.

RESULTS

Median total hospitalization costs were significantly higher in the highest HFRS (SGD$22,432) patients as compared to intermediate (SGD$18,759) and low HFRS (SGD$15,671) patients. The difference between the high and low groups remains significant after adjusting for covariates using quantile regression. Similar results were shown for median length of stay (14 vs 10 vs 8 days), total number of complications (2 vs 1 vs 0) and adjusted time to surgery (p < 0.05). HFRS was not associated with 30-day readmission or 30-day or 1-year mortality.

CONCLUSION

Frailty is associated with a marked increase in total costs in hip fracture patients. HFRS proved useful in estimating LOS and outcomes for older patients with hip fractures.

Impact of Frailty Risk on Oral Intake and Length of Hospital Stay in Older Patients with Pneumonia: A Historical Cohort Study

The aim of this study was to examine the association between frailty risk and outcomes in older patients with pneumonia. For this purpose, the JMDC multi-center database was used, and a historical cohort study was conducted to examine the association between the Hospital Frailty Risk Score (HFRS) and oral intake prognosis and length of hospital stay in older patients hospitalized with pneumonia. Patients were classified into low-risk (HFRS < 5), intermediate-risk (HFRS = 5−15), and high-risk (HFRS > 15) groups based on their HFRS scores, and outcomes were defined as the number of days from admission to the start of oral intake and length of hospital stay. A total of 98,420 patients with pneumonia (mean age 82.2 ± 7.2) were finally included. Of these patients, 72,207 (73.4%) were in the low-risk group, 23,136 (23.5%) were in the intermediate-risk group, and 3077 (3.1%) were in the high-risk group. The intermediate- and high-risk groups had a higher number of days to the start of oral intake than the low-risk group (intermediate-risk group: coefficient 0.705, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.642−0.769; high-risk group: coefficient 0.889, 95% CI 0.740−1.038). In addition, the intermediate- and high-risk groups also had longer hospital stays than the low-risk group (intermediate-risk group: coefficient 5.743, 95% CI 5.305−6.180; high-risk group: coefficient 7.738, 95% CI 6.709−8.766). Overall, we found that HFRS is associated with delayed initiation of oral intake and prolonged hospital stay in older patients with pneumonia. Therefore, evaluation based on HFRS could be helpful in making clinical decisions regarding the selection of feeding strategies and when to discharge older patients with pneumonia.

Impact of Frailty Risk on Adverse Outcomes after Traumatic Brain Injury: A Historical Cohort Study

We evaluated the utility of the Hospital Frailty Risk Score (HFRS) as a predictor of adverse events after hospitalization in a retrospective analysis of traumatic brain injury (TBI). This historical cohort study analyzed the data of patients hospitalized with TBI between April 2014 and August 2020 who were registered in the JMDC database. We used HFRS to classify the patients into the low- (HFRS < 5), intermediate- (HFRS5-15), and high- (HFRS > 15)-frailty risk groups. Outcomes were the length of hospital stay, the number of patients with Barthel Index score ≥ 95 on, Barthel Index gain, and in-hospital death. We used logistic and linear regression analyses to estimate the association between HFRS and outcome in TBI. We included 18,065 patients with TBI (mean age: 71.8 years). Among these patients, 10,139 (56.1%) were in the low-frailty risk group, 7388 (40.9%) were in the intermediate-frailty risk group, and 538 (3.0%) were in the high-frailty risk group. The intermediate- and high-frailty risk groups were characterized by longer hospital stays than the low-frailty risk group (intermediate-frailty risk group: coefficient 1.952, 95%; confidence interval (CI): 1.117−2.786; high-frailty risk group: coefficient 5.770; 95% CI: 3.160−8.379). The intermediate- and high-frailty risk groups were negatively associated with a Barthel Index score ≥ 95 on discharge (intermediate-frailty risk group: odds ratio 0.645; 95% CI: 0.595−0.699; high-frailty risk group: odds ratio 0.221; 95% CI: 0.157−0.311) and Barthel Index gain (intermediate-frailty risk group: coefficient −4.868, 95% CI: −5.599−−3.773; high-frailty risk group: coefficient −19.596, 95% CI: −22.242−−16.714). The intermediate- and high-frailty risk groups were not associated with in-hospital deaths (intermediate-frailty risk group: odds ratio 0.901; 95% CI: 0.766−1.061; high-frailty risk group: odds ratio 0.707; 95% CI: 0.459−1.091). We found that HFRS could predict adverse outcomes during hospitalization in TBI patients.

Developing and validating a scoring system for measuring frailty in patients with hip fracture: a novel model for predicting short-term postoperative mortality

Objectives

Frailty is common among patients with hip fracture and may, in part, contribute to the increased risk of mortality and morbidity after hip fracture surgery. This study aimed to develop a novel frailty score for patients with traumatic hip fracture that could be used to predict postoperative mortality as well as facilitate further research into the role of frailty in patients with hip fracture.

Methods

The Orthopedic Hip Frailty Score (OFS) was developed using a national dataset, retrieved from the Swedish National Quality Registry for Hip Fractures, that contained all adult patients who underwent surgery for a traumatic hip fracture in Sweden between January 1, 2008 and December 31, 2017. Candidate variables were selected from the Nottingham Hip Fracture Score, Sernbo Score, Charlson Comorbidity Index, 5-factor modified Frailty Index, as well as the Revised Cardiac Risk Index and ranked based on their permutation importance, with the top 5 variables being selected for the score. The OFS was then validated on a local dataset that only included patients from Orebro County, Sweden.

Results

The national dataset consisted of 126,065 patients. 2365 patients were present in the local dataset. The most important variables for predicting 30-day mortality were congestive heart failure, institutionalization, non-independent functional status, an age ≥85, and a history of malignancy. In the local dataset, the OFS achieved an area under the receiver-operating characteristic curve (95% CI) of 0.77 (0.74 to 0.80) and 0.76 (0.74 to 0.78) when predicting 30-day and 90-day postoperative mortality, respectively.

Conclusions

The OFS is a significant predictor of short-term postoperative mortality in patients with hip fracture that outperforms, or performs on par with, all other investigated indices.

Level of evidence

Level III, Prognostic and Epidemiological.

The Impact of Frailty on Adverse Outcomes in Geriatric Hip Fracture Patients: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Objective

With an aging population and advances in medicine, more research focuses on health and longevity in geriatric adults. Recently, frailty has gradually emerged to assess physical conditions. Frailty can be generally described as a multi-dimensional situation of increased vulnerabilities to both endogenous and exogenous stressors. The objective of the review was to evaluate the predictive value of frailty on adverse outcomes in geriatric hip fracture patients.

Materials and Methods

We searched PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, and the Cochrane library for relevant literature about the connection between frailty and poor outcomes in hip fracture elders.

Results

Eleven studies involving a total of 45,979 participants were selected in our study. Our results indicated that frailty could significantly predict postoperative and in-patient complications (OR, 1.46; 95% CI, 1.13–1.90; I2 = 77.4%). Frail elders had higher risk of inpatient mortality (OR, 1.68; 95% CI, 1.26–2.25; I2 = 0.0%), 6-month mortality (OR, 1.46; 95% CI, 1.25–1.72; I2 = 0.0%) and ≥1-year mortality (OR, 2.24; 95% CI, 1.66–3.04; I2 = 91.3%). Furthermore, the risk of prolonged hospital stays was 1.15 times more likely in frail patients (95% CI, 1.03–1.28; I2 = 14.8%).

Conclusion

Frailty can predict adverse outcomes effectively in geriatric hip fracture patients.

Systematic Review Registration

https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/PROSPERO/#recordDetails.

What do hip fracture patients die from?

Hip fractures in the elderly are associated with an increased mortality rate, even if they are operated within the recommended time window. However, the causes of mortality vary considerably depending on the postoperative period and the patients' comorbidities. In the 30-day postoperative period, the most common causes of death are acute processes such as bacterial and aspiration pneumonia followed by myocardial infarction, cancer, gastrointestinal hemorrhage, stroke, pulmonary embolism, and acute renal failure. In the 6-month and 1-year postoperative period, chronic processes appear to be the most important causes of death, as well as decompensation of patients' chronic diseases. To enhance the literature, we performed this literature review to summarize and discuss the causes of mortality of elderly hip fracture patients depending on the postoperative period that they occur, and possibly to address the question what do hip fracture patients die from? Our aim was to perform an interesting and concise paper that the curious reader will find interesting and informative.

Effects of Frailty on Outcomes Following Surgery Among Patients With Hip Fractures: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Background

Frailty is a syndrome of multisystem dysfunction in the elderly. The association between preoperative frailty and postoperative outcomes in patients with hip fractures is unclear. To address this issue, we performed a meta-analysis to determine the association of frailty with postoperative mortality, complications, and readmission in patients with hip fractures.

Methods

We searched PubMed, Web of Science, Embase, and The Cochrane Library for cohort studies of frailty associated with postoperative adverse events in patients with hip fractures from inception to November 6, 2021. The Newcastle-Ottawa Scale was used to evaluate the quality of the included literature. Statistical analysis of meta-analysis was performed using Review Manager 5.3.

Results

Twelve retrospective cohort studies and seven prospective cohort studies involving a total of 62,132 patients met the inclusion criteria for this meta-analysis. Compared with non-frail patients, the pooled results showed that frailty was associated with patient in-hospital mortality (relative risk [RR] = 2.93; 95% confidence intervals [CI]: 2.56–3.34), 30-day mortality (RR = 2.85, 95%CI: 1.67–4.85) and total complications (RR = 1.79, 95%CI: 1.50–2.15). Subgroup analysis showed that the type of study design and frailty assessment tool had no significant effect on the results. Sensitivity analysis showed that the polled results of frailty predicted one-year mortality and 30-day readmission was unstable.

Conclusions

In this meta-analysis, we found that preoperative frailty may be associated with postoperative adverse events in patients with hip fractures, including in-hospital mortality, 30-day mortality, and postoperative complications.

Systematic Review Registration: PROSPERO, identifier: CRD42021287739.

Hospital Frailty Risk Score predicts adverse events in older patients with vertebral compression fractures: Analysis of data in a nationwide in-patient database in Japan

AIMS

This study investigated the usefulness of frailty for predicting adverse events in patients with vertebral compression fractures (VCFs) during hospitalization using data obtained from the Japanese health insurance system.

METHODS

This retrospective cohort study of patients with VCFs aged ≥65 years was conducted using a nationwide database in Japan. We examined the relationships between frailty risk, classified using the Hospital Frailty Risk Score (HFRS), in-hospital mortality, and complications such as pressure ulcers and pneumonia. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was used to estimate the association between the HFRS and the outcomes of patients with VCFs.

RESULTS

In this study, the data of 30 980 in-patients with VCFs were analyzed. Of these patients, 76.8%, 21.3%, and 1.9% had low, intermediate, and high risks of frailty, respectively. The higher the risk of frailty, the higher the rate of in-hospital mortality and the occurrence of all complications (P < 0.001 for trend). An intermediate risk of frailty was independently associated with in-hospital mortality (odds ratio [OR], 1.421; P < 0.001), whereas a high risk of frailty did not show statistical significance (OR, 1.385; P = 0.150). Each frailty risk was independently associated with the occurrence of all complications during hospitalization.

CONCLUSIONS

The HFRS, which can assess the risk of frailty based on routinely collected medical records, was predictive of adverse events in older patients with VCFs based on a nationwide database in Japan. Future studies need to assess approaches to preventing adverse events in frail VCF patients. Geriatr Gerontol Int 2022; ••: ••-••.