The Prediction of Successful Aging by Frailty, Functional Cognition and Well-Being in Community-Dwelling Older Adults: A Cross-Sectional Survey.

Abstract

Introduction: It is widely recognised that frailty components and the functional cognition are associated with successful aging (SA). However, the true figures of this association are uncertain.

Purpose: To examine the prediction of SA by frailty, functional cognition and well-being in community-dwelling adults aged 65 years and over.

Patients and methods: A convenience-sampling method in a cross-sectional design was used to recruit older people who received supportive care at an "Open Protection Centre for the Elderly" in Crete, Greece, from March to June 2023. SA was assessed using the Successful Aging Index (SAI) and frailty using the Tilburg Frailty Indicator (TFI), well-being was assessed with the WHO-5 questionnaire, and the functional cognition was assessed with the Functional Assessment Staging Tool (FAST). To predict Successful Aging, SAI was placed as a dependent variable, and FAST staging, TFI, and WHO-5 as independent variables, including sociodemographic characteristics.

Results: The mean age of the 178 participants (62.4% female) was 73.79 ± 5.41, and the frailty mean value was 6.88 ± 3.11 (range 0-15). Our sample experienced middle levels of SA (mean 54.64 ± 25.62 [range 6-95]) and well-being (mean 53.42 ± 24.66 [range 0-100]). The hierarchical linear regression model revealed that participants with physical (-2.41, p<0.001) and social frailty (-2.52, p = 0.013) are expected to present a significantly lower SA, even after adjusting for sociodemographic characteristics. Well-being was also predicted SA, suggesting that higher levels of well-being are associated with greater SA (0.27, p<0.001).

Conclusion: Our findings indicate that frailty, well-being and functional cognition predicted lower SA in community-dwelling older adults, highlighting the importance of community-based interventions led by interdisciplinary teams.