Recurrent hospitalisation with pneumonia is associated with higher 1-year mortality in frail older people

A review of evidence for pneumococcal vaccination in adults at increased risk of pneumococcal disease: risk group definitions and optimization of vaccination coverage in the United Kingdom

INTRODUCTION

Pneumococcal disease (PD) significantly contributes to morbidity and mortality, carrying substantial economic and public health burden. This article is a targeted review of evidence for pneumococcal vaccination in the UK, the definitions of groups at particular risk of PD and vaccine effectiveness.

AREAS COVERED

Relevant evidence focusing on UK data from surveillance systems, randomized controlled trials, observational studies and publicly available government documents is collated and reviewed. Selected global data are included where appropriate.

EXPERT OPINION

National vaccination programs have reduced the incidence of vaccine-type PD, despite the rising prominence of non-vaccine serotypes in the UK. The introduction of higher-valency conjugate vaccines provides an opportunity to improve protection against PD for adults in risk groups. Several incentives are in place to encourage general practitioners to vaccinate risk groups, but uptake is low-suboptimal particularly among at-risk individuals. Wider awareness and understanding among the public and healthcare professionals may increase vaccination uptake and coverage. National strategies targeting organizational factors are urgently needed to achieve optimal access to vaccines. Finally, identifying new risk factors and approaches to risk assessment for PD are crucial to ensure those at risk of PD can benefit from pneumococcal vaccination.

The prevalence of frailty and pre-frailty among geriatric hospital inpatients and its association with economic prosperity and healthcare expenditure: A systematic review and meta-analysis of 467,779 geriatric hospital inpatients

BACKGROUND

Frailty is a common and clinically significant condition among geriatric populations. Although well-evidenced pooled estimates of the prevalence of frailty exist within various settings and populations, presently there are none assessing the overall prevalence of frailty among geriatric hospital inpatients. The purpose of this review was to systematically search and analyse the prevalence of frailty among geriatric hospital inpatients within the literature and examine its associations with national economic indicators.

METHODS

Systematic searches were conducted on Ovid, Web of Science, Scopus, CINAHL Plus, and the Cochrane Library, encompassing all literature published prior to 22 November 2018, supplemented with manual reference searches. Included studies utilised a validated operational definition of frailty, reported the prevalence of frailty, had a minimum age ≥ 65 years, attempted to assess the whole ward/clinical population, and occurred among hospital inpatients. Two reviewers independently extracted data and assessed study quality.

RESULTS

Ninety-six studies with a pooled sample of 467,779 geriatric hospital inpatients were included. The median critical appraisal score was 8/9 (range 7-9). The pooled prevalence of frailty, and pre-frailty, among geriatric hospital inpatients was 47.4% (95% CI 43.7-51.1%), and 25.8% (95% CI 22.0-29.6%), respectively. Significant differences were observed in the prevalence of frailty stratified by age, prevalent morbidity, ward type, clinical population, and operational definition. No significant differences were observed in stratified analyses by sex or continent, or significant associations between the prevalence of frailty and economic indicators.

CONCLUSIONS

Frailty is highly prevalent among geriatric hospital inpatients. High heterogeneity exists within this setting based on various clinical and demographic characteristics. Pooled estimates reported in this review place the prevalence of frailty among geriatric hospital inpatients between that reported for community-dwelling older adults and older adults in nursing homes, outlining an increase in the relative prevalence of frailty with progression through the healthcare system.

Identifying older adults with frailty approaching end-of-life: A systematic review

BACKGROUND

People with frailty may have specific needs for end-of-life care, but there is no consensus on how to identify these people in a timely way, or whether they will benefit from intervention.

AIM

To synthesise evidence on identification of older people with frailty approaching end-of-life, and whether associated intervention improves outcomes.

DESIGN

Systematic review (PROSPERO: CRD42020462624).

DATA SOURCES

Six databases were searched, with no date restrictions, for articles reporting prognostic or intervention studies. Key inclusion criteria were adults aged 65 and over, identified as frail via an established measure. End-of-life was defined as the final 12 months. Key exclusion criteria were proxy definitions of frailty, or studies involving people with cancer, even if also frail.

RESULTS

Three articles met the inclusion criteria. Strongest evidence came from one study in English primary care, which showed distinct trajectories in electronic Frailty Index scores in the last 12 months of life, associated with increased risk of death. We found no studies evaluating established clinical tools (e.g. Gold Standards Framework) with existing frail populations. We found no intervention studies; the literature on advance care planning with people with frailty has relied on proxy definitions of frailty.

CONCLUSION

Clear implications for policy and practice are hindered by the lack of studies using an established approach to assessing frailty. Future end-of-life research needs to use explicit approaches to the measurement and reporting of frailty, and address the evidence gap on interventions. A focus on models of care that incorporate a palliative approach is essential.

Frailty is associated with susceptibility and severity of pneumonia in older adults (A JAGES multilevel cross-sectional study)

Pneumonia is a leading cause of mortality among older adults worldwide. Recently, several studies reported that frailty was associated with mortality among older adults hospitalized due to respiratory infectious diseases, including pneumonia. However, it is unknown whether frailty is associated with susceptibility to and severity of pneumonia in functionally-independent community-dwelling older adults. In this study, we examined whether frailty increased the susceptibility to pneumonia and hospitalization in older adults. We used cross-sectional data from the Japan Gerontological Evaluation Study; the data was collected by using mail-based, self-reported questionnaires from 177,991 functionally-independent community-dwelling older adults aged ≥ 65 years. Our results showed that frailty was significantly associated with both occurrence of and hospitalization due to pneumonia after adjustments with covariates; (Preference ratio {PR} 1.92, 95% confidence interval {95% CI} [1.66-2.22] and PR 1.80, 95% CI [1.42-2.28], respectively, p < 0.001 for the both). Pre-frailty was associated only with the occurrence of pneumonia. Besides, the instrumental activity of daily living, physical strength, nutrition status, oral function, homeboundness, and depression status in frail older adults were associated with either or both occurrence of and hospitalization due to pneumonia. Our results suggest that frailty influenced the susceptibility to and severity of pneumonia in older adults.

Frailty is associated with susceptibility and severity of pneumonia in older adults (A JAGES multilevel cross-sectional study)

Pneumonia is a leading cause of mortality among older adults worldwide. Recently, several studies reported that frailty was associated with mortality among older adults hospitalized due to respiratory infectious diseases, including pneumonia. However, it is unknown whether frailty is associated with susceptibility to and severity of pneumonia in functionally-independent community-dwelling older adults. In this study, we examined whether frailty increased the susceptibility to pneumonia and hospitalization in older adults. We used cross-sectional data from the Japan Gerontological Evaluation Study; the data was collected by using mail-based, self-reported questionnaires from 177,991 functionally-independent community-dwelling older adults aged ≥ 65 years. Our results showed that frailty was significantly associated with both occurrence of and hospitalization due to pneumonia after adjustments with covariates; (Preference ratio {PR} 1.92, 95% confidence interval {95% CI} [1.66-2.22] and PR 1.80, 95% CI [1.42-2.28], respectively, p < 0.001 for the both). Pre-frailty was associated only with the occurrence of pneumonia. Besides, the instrumental activity of daily living, physical strength, nutrition status, oral function, homeboundness, and depression status in frail older adults were associated with either or both occurrence of and hospitalization due to pneumonia. Our results suggest that frailty influenced the susceptibility to and severity of pneumonia in older adults.

Factors associated with lethality from pneumonia in an acute care for the elderly unit: a retrospective cohort

Introduction: Pneumonia is the leading cause of death due to infection in the world, mainly affecting the older adult population. Objective: To determine the risk factors associated with lethality at 30 days in patients with pneumonia in an acute care for the elderly unit. Materials and methods: We conducted an observational, analytical retrospective cohort study including 114 patients aged 60 years and older hospitalized in an acute care geriatric unit with a diagnosis of pneumonia. The primary outcome was lethality at 30 days. Bivariate and multivariable log-binomial regression analyzes were performed to explore the relationship between independent variables and the primary outcome. Results: The 30-day lethality was 26.3% and the mean age was 84.45 ± 7.37 years; 54.4% of participants were men. In the multivariable analysis, age ≥90 years (Relative Risk, RR=1.62, 95% CI: 1.05-2.68, p=0.04), multilobar commitment (RR=1.92, 95% CI:1.12-3.32, p=0.02), elevated urea nitrogen (≥22.5 the median; RR=3.93, 95% CI:1.67-9.25, p<0.01), and a score of zero in the Lawton index at admission (RR=3.20, 95% CI:1.05-9.78, p=0.04) were independent predictors of 30-day lethality from pneumonia. Conclusion: In older adults hospitalized for pneumonia in an acute care geriatric unit, advanced age, the presence of multilobar commitment, dependency in functional status, and elevated ureic nitrogen levels were the main predictors of short-term lethality risk.

Longitudinal changes in frailty prevalence and related factors in older adults living in long-term care facilities

AIMS

To investigate longitudinal changes in the prevalence of frailty and related factors in older adults residing in long-term care facilities (LTCFs) in Korea.

DESIGN

A longitudinal cohort study design.

METHODS

Three hundred and fifty adults (aged 65 and older) residing in 10 LTCFs between January 2014 and January 2016 in Korea were initially investigated. Among these, 182 participants were included in the final analysis. Fried's Cardiovascular Health Study index was used to assess frailty based on Freiheit and colleagues. Data analysed included descriptive statistics and repeated-measures multivariate analysis of variance.

RESULTS

The prevalence of frailty was 25.8%, 33.5% and 35.2% in 2014, 2015 and 2016, respectively. Differences in dependence of activities of daily living, number of chronic diseases, nutritional status and depression were statistically significant among the normal, pre-frail and frail groups at each year. Overall, from 2014-2016, the percentage of older adults decreased from 9.4-6.0% in the normal group and from 64.8%-58.8% in the pre-frail group, while increasing in the frail group from 25.8%-35.2%.

CONCLUSION

The prevalence rate of frailty among older adults living in LTCFs was high and the rate of frail older adults gradually increased over time.

IMPACT

Frailty is a comprehensive health condition and a dynamic, changeable state. This longitudinal study showed a high rate of frailty and dynamic change in frailty level over time among residents. Because frailty is dynamic in every older adult over time, management should be tailored according to the individual's state of frailty to prevent functional decline. Development of a comprehensive frailty assessment tool that can easily measure not only physical frailty but also the comprehensive aspects of frailty would be useful for older adults in LTCFs.

Evaluation of clinical frailty screening in geriatric acute care

BACKGROUND

While frailty status is an attractive risk stratification tool, the evaluation of frailty in acute care can be challenging as some inpatients are unable to complete performance-based tests as part of frailty assessment and some tools may lack discriminative ability and categorize majority of cohorts as "frail". In this study, we evaluated the feasibility of frailty screening with the simple clinical frailty scale (CFS) by different clinicians, and its association with mortality and rehospitalization in a geriatric acute care setting.

METHODS

This study took place in Geriatric Medicine Department of a General Hospital in Singapore. We analysed records of 314 inpatients aged 70 years and older. At baseline, premorbid frailty was assessed using the CFS of the Canadian Study on Health and Aging. Demographic characteristics and other variables were retrieved from their medical records. Primary outcomes were mortality and rehospitalization during the 6-month follow-up. Survival analysis was used to compare the time to death and rehospitalization among CFS categories (1-4: nonfrail, 5-6: mild-moderate frail, and 7-8: severe frail).

RESULTS

CFS showed a high inter-rater reliability when used by different clinicians. In the Cox proportional hazard model controlling for age, gender, Charlson comorbidity index, modified severity of illness index, and discharge placements, severe frailty determined by CFS (HR = 2.09, 95% CI = 1.01-4.33, P = 0.047) and CFS scores (HR = 1.27, 95% CI = 1.05-1.53, P = 0.012) were significantly associated with higher mortality until 6-month postdischarge, but not rehospitalization.

CONCLUSION

Frailty status determined by CFS adds to disease severity and comorbidity in predicting short-term mortality but not rehospitalization in older inpatients who received geriatric acute care in our setting. CFS is reliable and has the potential to be incorporated into routine screening to better identify, communicate, and address frailty in the acute settings.

Pharmacotherapy of Lower Respiratory Tract Infections in Elderly-Focused on Antibiotics

Lower respiratory tract infections (LRTIs) refer to the inflammation of the trachea, bronchi, bronchioles, and lung tissue. Old people have an increased risk of developing LRTIs compared to young adults. The prevalence of LRTIs in the elderly population is not only related to underlying diseases and aging itself, but also to a variety of clinical issues, such as history of hospitalization, previous antibacterial therapy, mechanical ventilation, antibiotic resistance. These factors mentioned above have led to an increase in the prevalence and mortality of LRTIs in the elderly, and new medical strategies targeting LRTIs in this population are urgently needed. After a systematic review of the current randomized controlled trials and related studies, we recommend novel pharmacotherapies that demonstrate advantages for the management of LRTIs in people over the age of 65. We also briefly reviewed current medications for respiratory communicable diseases in the elderly. Various sources of information were used to ensure all relevant studies were included. We searched Pubmed, MEDLINE (OvidSP), EMBASE (OvidSP), and ClinicalTrials.gov. Strengths and limitations of these drugs were evaluated based on whether they have novelty of mechanism, favorable pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamic profiles, avoidance of interactions and intolerance, simplicity of dosing, and their ability to cope with challenges which was mainly evaluated by the primary and secondary endpoints. The purpose of this review is to recommend the most promising antibiotics for treatment of LRTIs in the elderly (both in hospital and in the outpatient setting) based on the existing results of clinical studies with the novel antibiotics, and to briefly review current medications for respiratory communicable diseases in the elderly, aiming to a better management of LRTIs in clinical practice.

Relationship between community walking ability and in-hospital mortality in elderly patients with sepsis: a single-center retrospective cohort study

Purpose

To examine the association of a simple frailty assessment, Life Space (LS), with in-hospital mortality in elderly patients with sepsis.

Methods

We used data from a single hospital between 2014 and 2017. We included elderly patients (age ≥ 65 years) admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) with sepsis, as defined by sepsis-3 criteria. Frailty assessment was based on a patient's ability to independently go out of the house before the ICU admission. We termed this dichotomous score as Life Space. The primary outcome was in-hospital mortality. Logistic regression was used to investigate the association of LS with each outcome after adjusting for age, sex, and Sequential Organ Failure Assessment score.

Results

Of the 335 participants included in the final analysis, 121 (36%) were classified as frail. LS-positive patients had a higher in-hospital mortality (adjusted odds ratio (aOR) 2.32; 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.36-3.96; P = 0.002) than did LS-negative patients. We observed similar patterns in six sets of sensitivity analyses after accounting for different confounders. In subgroup analyses, significant interactions were observed in participants with versus those without treatment limitations (aOR 1.02 vs. 2.66, P for interaction = 0.042).

Conclusions

In this single-center study, frailty assessed by LS was independently associated with a higher in-hospital mortality.

Lower long-term mortality in obese patients with community-acquired pneumonia: possible role of CRP

OBJECTIVE

The present study aimed to investigate the relationship between obesity and mortality in patients with community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) in China.

METHODS

In total, 909 patients with CAP were recruited for this study from January 2010 to June 2015. All patients were selected and divided into 4 groups according to their body mass index (BMI) values. All patients' clinical information was recorded. The associations among mortality; BMI; the 30-day, 6-month and 1-year survival rates for different BMI classes; the etiology of pneumonia in each BMI group; and the risk factors for 1-year mortality in CAP patients were analyzed.

RESULT

With the exception of the level of C-reactive protein (CRP), no other clinical indexes showed significant differences among the different BMI groups. No significant differences were observed among all groups in terms of the 30-d and 6-month mortality rates (p>0.05). There was a significantly lower risk of 1-year mortality in the obese group than in the nonobese group, (p<0.05). Logistic regression analysis showed that there were seven independent risk factors for 1-year mortality in CAP patients, namely, age, cardiovascular disease, cerebrovascular disease, obesity, APACHE II score, level of CRP and CAP severity.

CONCLUSION

Compared with nonobese patients with CAP, obese CAP patients may have a lower mortality rate, especially with regard to 1-year mortality, and CRP may be associated with the lower mortality rate in obese individuals than in nonobese individuals.

What do we know about frailty in the acute care setting? A scoping review

Background

The ability of acute care providers to cope with the influx of frail older patients is increasingly stressed, and changes need to be made to improve care provided to older adults. Our purpose was to conduct a scoping review to map and synthesize the literature addressing frailty in the acute care setting in order to understand how to tackle this challenge. We also aimed to highlight the current gaps in frailty research.

Methods

This scoping review included original research articles with acutely-ill Emergency Medical Services (EMS) or hospitalized older patients who were identified as frail by the authors. We searched Medline, CINAHL, Embase, PsycINFO, Eric, and Cochrane from January 2000 to September 2015.

Results

Our database search initially resulted in 8658 articles and 617 were eligible. In 67% of the articles the authors identified their participants as frail but did not report on how they measured frailty. Among the 204 articles that did measure frailty, the most common disciplines were geriatrics (14%), emergency department (14%), and general medicine (11%). In total, 89 measures were used. This included 13 established tools, used in 51% of the articles, and 35 non-frailty tools, used in 24% of the articles. The most commonly used tools were the Clinical Frailty Scale, the Frailty Index, and the Frailty Phenotype (12% each). Most often (44%) researchers used frailty tools to predict adverse health outcomes. In 74% of the cases frailty predicted the outcome examined, typically mortality and length of stay.

Conclusions

Most studies (83%) were conducted in non-geriatric disciplines and two thirds of the articles identified participants as frail without measuring frailty. There was great variability in tools used and more recently published studies were more likely to use established frailty tools. Overall, frailty appears to be a good predictor of adverse health outcomes. For frailty to be implemented in clinical practice frailty tools should help formulate the care plan and improve shared decision making. How this will happen has yet to be determined.

Electronic supplementary material

The online version of this article (10.1186/s12877-018-0823-2) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Sex Differences in Trajectories of Risk After Rehospitalization for Heart Failure, Acute Myocardial Infarction, or Pneumonia

BACKGROUND

Women have an increased risk of rehospitalization in the immediate postdischarge period; however, few studies have determined how readmission risk dynamically changes on a day-to-day basis over the full year after hospitalization by sex and how these differences compare with the risk for mortality.

METHODS AND RESULTS

We identified >3 000 000 hospitalizations of patients with a principal discharge diagnosis of heart failure, acute myocardial infarction, or pneumonia and estimated sex differences in the daily risk of rehospitalization/death 1 year after discharge from a population of Medicare fee-for-service beneficiaries aged 65 years and older. We calculated the (1) time required for adjusted rehospitalization/mortality risks to decline 50% from maximum values after discharge, (2) time required for the adjusted readmission risk to approach plateau periods of minimal day-to-day change, and (3) extent to which adjusted risks are greater among recently hospitalized patients versus Medicare patients. We identified 1 392 289, 530 771, and 1 125 231 hospitalizations for heart failure, acute myocardial infarction, and pneumonia, respectively. The adjusted daily risk of rehospitalization varied by admitting condition (hazard rate ratio for women versus men, 1.10 for acute myocardial infarction; hazard rate ratio, 1.04 for heart failure; and hazard rate ratio, 0.98 for pneumonia). However, for all conditions, the adjusted daily risk of death was higher among men versus women (hazard rate ratio women versus with men, <1). For both sexes, there was a similar timing of peak daily risk, half daily risk, and reaching plateau.

CONCLUSIONS

Although the association of sex with daily risk of rehospitalization varies across conditions, women are at highest risk after discharge for acute myocardial infarction. Future studies should focus on understanding the determinants of sex differences in rehospitalization risk among conditions.

Bacterial Pneumonia in Older Adults

The incidence of pneumonia increases with age, and is particularly high in patients who reside in long-term care facilities (LTCFs). Mortality rates for pneumonia in older adults are high and have not decreased in the last decade. Atypical symptoms and exacerbation of underlying illnesses should trigger clinical suspicion of pneumonia. Risk factors for multidrug-resistant organisms are more common in older adults, particularly among LTCF residents, and should be considered when making empiric treatment decisions. Monitoring of clinical stability and underlying comorbid conditions, potential drug-drug interactions, and drug-related adverse events are important factors in managing elderly patients with pneumonia.

A New Prognosis Score to Predict Mortality After Acute Pneumonia in Very Elderly Patients

OBJECTIVES

Acute pneumonia (AP) induces an excess of mortality among the elderly. We evaluated the value of a new predictive biomarker index compared to usual prognosis scores for predicting in-hospital and 1-year mortalities in elderly inpatients with AP.

DESIGN

Retrospective study in 6 clinical departments of a university hospital.

SETTING

Burgundy university hospital (France).

PARTICIPANTS

All patients aged 75 and over with AP and hospitalized between January 1 and June 30, 2013, in the departments of medicine (5) and intensive care (1) of our university hospital.

MEASUREMENTS

A new index, which we named UBMo, was created by multiplying the uremia (U in the formula) by the N-terminal-pro-brain natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) plasmatic rate (B), divided by the monocyte count (Mo).

RESULTS

Among the 217 patients included, there were 138 community-acquired pneumonia, 56 nursing home-acquired pneumonia, and 23 hospital-acquired pneumonia. In-hospital and 1-year mortality rates were respectively 19.8% and 43.8%. In multivariate analysis, Pneumonia Severity Index (PSI), unlike CURB-65 (confusion, urea >7 mmol/L, respiratory rate ≥30 breaths/min, blood pressure <90 mmHg systolic or ≤60 mmHg diastolic, age ≥65) score, was associated with in-hospital and 1-year mortalities. UBMo index performed better than PSI and CURB-65 scores in predicting both in-hospital and 1-year mortalities. For in-hospital mortality, the areas under the receiver operating characteristic curves (AUCs) were 0.89 (95% CI = 0.84-0.94), 0.72 (95% CI = 0.65-0.80), and 0.63 (95% CI = 0.54-0.72), respectively, for the 3 scores. For 1-year mortality, the AUCs were 0.93 (95% CI = 0.89-0.98), 0.66 (95% CI = 0.59-0.74), and 0.58 (95% CI = 0.50-0.66), respectively, for the 3 scores. The cut point for the UBMo index of 20,000 × 10^-9 ng·mmol/L had a sensitivity of 93.1% and 80.9% and a specificity of 76.3% and 95.8%, respectively, for in-hospital and 1-year mortalities.

CONCLUSION

If confirmed by prospective studies, the UBMo index appears very efficient in identifying patients at high risk of in-hospital and 1-year mortalities after an AP.

Trend of centenarian deaths in Hong Kong between 2001 and 2010

AIM

To examine the trends in the leading causes of deaths in centenarians in Hong Kong.

METHODS

Descriptive analyses of vital statistics data on mortality in Hong Kong from 2001 to 2010 were carried out.

RESULTS

The number of centenarians' deaths increased by 136% in 10 years, from less than 28 men and 166 women in 2001 to 80 men and 378 women in 2010. During the study period, the top leading cause of death was pneumonia, accounting for 33.8% of all deaths. In contrast, the other leading causes accounted for much smaller percentages; for example, the second and third leading causes were chronic ischemic heart disease and unspecified dementia, and account for 4.3% and 4.2% of the total, respectively. This cause-of-death pattern has remained fairly stable between 2001 and 2010. A total of 985 (30.8%) deaths occurred in January to March. The correlation between the average monthly temperature and the number of deaths was -0.720 (P < 0.01).

CONCLUSIONS

The number of deaths continues to increase in Hong Kong. These trends have major implications for healthcare in an aging population. Geriatr Gerontol Int 2017; 17: 931-936.

The clinical frailty scale predicts functional decline and mortality when used by junior medical staff: a prospective cohort study

BACKGROUND

Increasing frailty is associated with risk of mortality and functional decline in hospitalized older adults, but there is no consensus on the best screening method for use by non-geriatricians. The objective of this study is to determine whether the clinical frailty scale (CFS) can be used to identify patient baseline frailty status in the acute general medical setting when used by junior medical staff using information obtained on routine clinical assessment.

METHODS

This was a prospective cohort study in an acute general medical unit. All patients aged 65 and over admitted to a general medical unit during August and September 2013 were eligible for the study. CFS score at baseline was documented by a member of the treating medical team. Demographic information and outcomes were obtained from medical records. The primary outcomes were functional decline and death within three months.

RESULTS

Frailty was assessed in 95 % of 179 eligible patients. 45 % of patients experienced functional decline and 11 % died within three months. 40 % of patients were classified as vulnerable/mildly frail, and 41 % were moderately to severely frail. When patients in residential care were excluded, increasing frailty was associated with functional decline (p = 0.011). Increasing frailty was associated with increasing mortality within three months (p = 0.012).

CONCLUSIONS

A high proportion of eligible patients had the frailty measure completed, demonstrating the acceptability of the CFS to clinicians. Despite lack of training for medical staff, increasing frailty was correlated with functional decline and mortality supporting the validity of the CFS as a frailty screening tool for clinicians.

Effect of age and residential status on the predictive performance of CURB-65 score

BACKGROUND

The CURB-65 score was designed to predict 30-day mortality and decide the site of care of pneumonia. It is uncertain how age and residential status affect the accuracy of CURB-65 score in older patients.

AIM

This study aimed to evaluate the effect of age and residential status on the performance of CURB-65 score in predicting 30-day all-cause mortality of pneumonia in older patients.

METHODS

We used combined data from two prospective observational cohorts of adult patients with pneumonia. Older patients aged ≥ 65 years were analysed.

RESULTS

Of 1644 patients, 1200 were living in the community and 464 residing in nursing homes. The 30-day mortality rates of community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) and nursing home-acquired pneumonia (NHAP) were 10.7% and 14.2% respectively. In each age group of CAP and NHAP, mortality increased with pneumonia severity. Mortality decreased with advancing age in NHAP, and the reverse was true for CAP. In NHAP but not CAP, the proportion of highly severe pneumonia (CURB-65 score ≥ 3) was lower in older patients. The overall predictive performance of CURB-65 score was comparable in CAP and NHAP. The accuracy deteriorated with advancing age in NHAP but not CAP. Using the cut-off score of ≥3 (highly severe pneumonia), the CURB-65 score achieved high negative predictive values (>90%) in CAP and NHAP.

CONCLUSIONS

Advancing age adversely affected the predictive performance of CURB-65 score in NHAP but not CAP. The score was not helpful in guiding the site of care at admission in older patients with pneumonia.

Association of the clinical frailty scale with hospital outcomes

BACKGROUND

The clinical frailty scale (CFS) was validated as a predictor of adverse outcomes in community-dwelling older people. In our hospital, the use of the CFS in emergency admissions of people aged ≥ 75 years was introduced under the Commissioning for Quality and Innovation payment framework.

AIM

We retrospectively studied the association of the CFS with patient characteristics and outcomes.

DESIGN

Retrospective observational study in a large tertiary university National Health Service hospital in UK.

METHODS

The CFS was correlated with transfer to specialist Geriatric ward, length of stay (LOS), in-patient mortality and 30-day readmission rate.

RESULTS

Between 1st August 2013 and 31st July 2014, there were 11 271 emergency admission episodes of people aged ≥ 75 years (all specialties), corresponding to 7532 unique patients (first admissions); of those, 5764 had the CFS measured by the admitting team (81% of them within 72 hr of admission). After adjustment for age, gender, Charlson comorbidity index and history of dementia and/or current cognitive concern, the CFS was an independent predictor of in-patient mortality [odds ratio (OR) = 1.60, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.48 to 1.74, P < 0.001], transfer to Geriatric ward (OR = 1.33, 95% CI: 1.24 to 1.42, P < 0.001) and LOS ≥ 10 days (OR = 1.19, 95% CI: 1.14 to 1.23, P < 0.001). The CFS was not a multivariate predictor of 30-day readmission.

CONCLUSIONS

The CFS may help predict in-patient mortality and target specialist geriatric resources within the hospital. Usual hospital metrics such as mortality and LOS should take into account measurable patient complexity.

Role of frailty assessment in patients undergoing cardiac interventions

Average life expectancy is increasing in the western world resulting in a growing number of frail individuals with coronary heart disease, often associated with comorbidities. Decisions to proceed to invasive interventions in elderly frail patients is challenging because they may gain benefit, but are also at risk of procedure-related complications. Current risk scores designed to predict mortality in cardiac procedures are mainly based on clinical and angiographic factors, with limitations in the elderly because they are mainly derived from a middle-aged population, do not account for frailty and do not predict the impact of the procedure on quality of life which often matters more to elderly patients than mortality. Frailty assessment has emerged as a measure of biological age that correlates well with quality of life, hospital admissions and mortality. Potentially, the incorporation of frailty into current risk assessment models will cause a shift towards more appropriate care. The need for a more accurate method of risk stratification incorporating frailty, particularly for elderly patients is pressing. This article reviews the association between frailty and cardiovascular disease, the impact of frailty on outcomes of cardiac interventions and suggests ways in which frailty assessment could be incorporated into cardiology clinical practice.