Prevalence of frailty in 62 countries across the world: a systematic review and meta-analysis of population-level studies

O'Caoimh, Rónán; Sezgin, Duygu; O'Donovan, Mark R.; Molloy, D. William; Clegg, Andrew; Rockwood, Kenneth; Liew, Aaron

Prevalence of frailty in 62 countries across the world: a systematic review and meta-analysis of population-level studies

dc.contributor.author	O'Caoimh, Rónán
dc.contributor.author	Sezgin, Duygu
dc.contributor.author	O'Donovan, Mark R.
dc.contributor.author	Molloy, D. William
dc.contributor.author	Clegg, Andrew
dc.contributor.author	Rockwood, Kenneth
dc.contributor.author	Liew, Aaron
dc.date.accessioned	2021-03-24T11:38:05Z
dc.date.available	2021-03-24T11:38:05Z
dc.date.issued	2020-10-17
dc.date.updated	2021-03-24T11:15:38Z
dc.description.abstract	Introduction: The prevalence of frailty at population level is unclear. We examined this in population-based studies, investigating sources of heterogeneity. Methods: PubMed, Embase, CINAHL and Cochrane Library databases were searched for observational population-level studies published between 1 January 1998 and 1 April 2020, including individuals aged ≥50 years, identified using any frailty measure. Prevalence estimates were extracted independently, assessed for bias and analysed using a random-effects model. Results: In total, 240 studies reporting 265 prevalence proportions from 62 countries and territories, representing 1,755,497 participants, were included. Pooled prevalence in studies using physical frailty measures was 12% (95% CI = 11–13%; n = 178), compared with 24% (95% CI = 22–26%; n = 71) for the deficit accumulation model (those using a frailty index, FI). For pre-frailty, this was 46% (95% CI = 45–48%; n = 147) and 49% (95% CI = 46–52%; n = 29), respectively. For physical frailty, the prevalence was higher among females, 15% (95% CI = 14–17%; n = 142), than males, 11% (95% CI = 10–12%; n = 144). For studies using a FI, the prevalence was also higher in females, 29% (95% CI = 24–35%; n = 34) versus 20% (95% CI = 16–24%; n = 34), for males. These values were similar for pre-frailty. Prevalence increased according to the minimum age at study inclusion. Analysing only data from nationally representative studies gave a frailty prevalence of 7% (95% CI = 5–9%; n = 46) for physical frailty and 24% (95% CI = 22–26%; n = 44) for FIs. Conclusions: Population-level frailty prevalence varied by classification and sex. Data were heterogenous and limited, particularly from nationally representative studies making the interpretation of differences by geographic region challenging. Common methodological approaches to gathering data are required to improve the accuracy of population-level prevalence estimates.	en
dc.description.status	Peer reviewed	en
dc.description.version	Accepted Version	en
dc.format.mimetype	application/pdf	en
dc.identifier.citation	O'Caoimh, R., Sezgin, D., O'Donovan, M. R., Molloy, D. W., Clegg, A., Rockwood, K. and Liew, A. (2021) 'Prevalence of frailty in 62 countries across the world: a systematic review and meta-analysis of population-level studies', Age and Ageing, 50(1), pp. 96-104. doi: 10.1093/ageing/afaa219	en
dc.identifier.doi	10.1093/ageing/afaa219	en
dc.identifier.eissn	1468-2834
dc.identifier.endpage	104	en
dc.identifier.issn	0002-0729
dc.identifier.issued	1	en
dc.identifier.journaltitle	Age and Ageing	en
dc.identifier.startpage	96	en
dc.identifier.uri	https://hdl.handle.net/10468/11159
dc.identifier.volume	50	en
dc.language.iso	en	en
dc.publisher	Oxford University Press	en
dc.rights	© 2020, the Authors. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the British Geriatrics Society. All rights reserved.	en
dc.subject	Frailty	en
dc.subject	Pre-frailty	en
dc.subject	Prevalence	en
dc.subject	Regional	en
dc.subject	Systematic review	en
dc.subject	Meta-analysis	en
dc.subject	Older people	en
dc.title	Prevalence of frailty in 62 countries across the world: a systematic review and meta-analysis of population-level studies	en
dc.type	Article (peer-reviewed)	en