To analyze the association between frailty and post-discharge healthcare utilization in older adults hospitalized with cardiovascular disease.
Key Findings:
Frail patients had longer hospital stays and lower functional status.
Frailty was associated with earlier cardiology visits (HR: 1.57; p = 0.042) and non-cardiac consultations (HR: 1.71; p = 0.012).
Frail patients had a higher risk of unplanned readmissions (HR: 2.11; p = 0.030).
In multivariate models, frailty remained independently associated with earlier non-cardiac visits (HR: 1.47; p = 0.017).
Mortality during follow-up was low (1.54%) and did not differ by frailty status.
Interpretation:
Frailty is associated with earlier post-discharge healthcare use, particularly outside cardiology, suggesting the need for integrated frailty screening in post-discharge planning.
Limitations:
The study's findings may not be generalizable beyond the specific population studied.
The sample size was relatively small (130 patients).
The study focused on a single hospital setting, which may limit broader applicability.
Conclusion:
Integrating frailty screening with functional and biochemical indicators may help identify older adults at risk of increased post-discharge healthcare utilization.
by Noel Rivas-González, María López, María José Castro, Belén Martín-Gil, Elsa Rodríguez-Gabella, Irene Alcoceba-Herrero, Mercedes Fernández-Castro, J. Alberto San Román
