Journal of Frailty & Aging最新文献

{"title":"Association of allostatic load with frailty trajectories and the mediating role of depressive symptoms.","authors":"Mohammad Azizzadeh, Agnes Pirker-Kees, Emiel F M Wouters, Daisy J A Janssen, Bart Spaetgens, Robab Breyer-Kohansal, Marie-Kathrin Breyer","doi":"10.1016/j.tjfa.2026.100132","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.tjfa.2026.100132","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Frailty is a dynamic, age-related condition marked by progressive loss of resilience. Its risk factors include socioeconomic status and physiological stress burden, such as allostatic load score (ALS), remain unclear. This study aims to examine the role of depression in the association between ALS and frailty trajectories.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>We analyzed data from 5885 LEAD cohort participants aged 25-82 years at baseline and from 3564 participants with follow-up data. Frailty status (robust, pre-frail, frail) was defined using the Fried phenotype, and transitions between visits were assessed. ALS was calculated from 14 parameters spanning cardiovascular, metabolic, and body composition measures. Associations of ALS with frailty status at baseline and with frailty transitions at follow-up were examined, and depressive symptoms were tested as a mediator.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>At baseline, 62.3% of participants were robust, 36.2% pre-frail, and 1.5% frail. Between visits, 16.3% transitioned to a worse frailty stage, while 17.7% improved. Higher ALS was linked to increased odds of being pre-frail/frail at baseline (OR 1.11; 95% CI: 1.08-1.15), and to a higher risk of transitioning from robust to pre-frail/frail (RRR 1.06; 95% CI: 1.02-1.09). Depressive symptoms mediated 35% (95% CI: 25-47%) of the cross-sectional and 17% (95% CI: 6.6-43%) of the longitudinal association between ALS and frailty.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Socioeconomic factors influenced frailty onset but not its progression, whereas depressive symptoms mediated approximately 17% of the effect of ALS on frailty development over time. These findings highlight the importance of exploring the effect of interventions for depression on frailty progression.</p>","PeriodicalId":51629,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Frailty & Aging","volume":"15 2","pages":"100132"},"PeriodicalIF":3.3,"publicationDate":"2026-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12873724/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146094828","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Associations between frailty, biomarkers of cerebral pathology, cognitive and neuropsychiatric symptoms: a memory clinic study.","authors":"Victor Gilles, Anthime Flaus, Achille Teillac, Marc Verny, Frédéric Blanc, Marc Paccalin, Thomas Desmidt, Sandrine Louchart de la Chapelle, Constance Dumay, Mathilde Sauvée, Sylvain Lehmann, Christophe Hirtz, François Cotton, Anthony Bathsavanis, Frédéric Gervais, Teddy Novais, Virginie Desestret, Nawele Boublay, Pierre Krolak-Salmon, Sophie Dautricourt, Antoine Garnier-Crussard","doi":"10.1016/j.tjfa.2026.100148","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.tjfa.2026.100148","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Frailty is a prevalent condition among older adults with neurocognitive disorders.</p><p><strong>Objectives: </strong>To ascertain whether frailty contributes to the severity of cognitive impairment and neuropsychiatric symptoms, and its association with cerebral pathology measured in vivo by fluid and imaging biomarkers.</p><p><strong>Design: </strong>We conducted cross-sectional and longitudinal analyses based on CLEM Study, a multicentre memory-clinic cohort that recruited participants between 2014 and 2018.</p><p><strong>Setting: </strong>CLEM Study occurred in eight memory centres in France (Lyon, Paris, Strasbourg, Poitiers, Tours, Grenoble) and Monaco.</p><p><strong>Participants: </strong>A total of 168 participants (mean age 80.5 ± 4.8 years) with mild to moderate dementia due to at least one aetiological diagnosis between Alzheimer's disease, dementia with Lewy bodies or vascular dementia were included in the study.</p><p><strong>Measurements: </strong>The participants were evaluated at baseline and followed up for two years. The concept of frailty was operationalised using a 45-item Frailty Index. Cognition was assessed using the ADAS-cog scale, while neuropsychiatric symptoms were evaluated with the Neuropsychiatric Inventory. The cerebral pathological score, a proxy for brain pathologies, was a composite score based on the presence of several in vivo biomarkers: presynaptic dopaminergic denervation on ¹²³I-FP-CIT SPECT (DaTscan®), vascular lesions on MRI, elevated blood-based pTau181, neurofilaments light-chain or glial fibrillary acid protein. Linear and mixed regression analyses were conducted to model the relationships between cognitive or neuropsychiatric symptoms, frailty and cerebral pathologic score, adjusted for age, sex and education.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>The findings indicate an impact of both frailty (β = 0.28, 95 % CI [0.14-0.43], p < 0.001) and cerebral pathological score (β = 0.30, 95 % CI [0.13-0.47], p = 0.002) on cognitive impairment. However, only frailty was associated with neuropsychiatric symptoms (β = 0.28, 95 % CI [0.14-0.43], p < 0.001), particularly with apathy (β = 0.40, 95 % CI [0.26-0.53], p < 0.001). We found an association between cerebral pathological score and longitudinal cognitive decline (β = 0.36, 95 % CI [0.19-0.53], p < 0.001) in exploratory analyses with available longitudinal data at 24 months (n = 74).</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Neurocognitive disorders are complex entities, where cognitive and neuropsychiatric symptoms are not fully influenced by the same factors. When cognitive symptoms seem more driven by cerebral pathology than frailty, neuropsychiatric symptoms appear to be more influenced by general state of frailty. Measuring and treating frailty might be a key factor in dealing with neuropsychiatric symptoms and their consequences.</p>","PeriodicalId":51629,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Frailty & Aging","volume":"15 3","pages":"100148"},"PeriodicalIF":3.3,"publicationDate":"2026-03-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13049627/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147516737","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Longitudinal norms of frailty measured by the frailty index: A cross-national comparison using data from the survey of health, aging, and retirement in Europe (SHARE).","authors":"Alejandra Marroig, Fernando Massa, Ángela Gutiérrez, Adil Supiyev, Barış Sevi, Graciela Muniz-Terrera","doi":"10.1016/j.tjfa.2026.100144","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.tjfa.2026.100144","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Frailty, a geriatric syndrome commonly used to identify vulnerable older adults, is a public health priority. However, the lack of cross-national comparisons of frailty trajectories and their distribution constrains current understanding of normative changes in frailty for residents across different countries.</p><p><strong>Objective: </strong>To derive longitudinal percentiles of frailty using a consistent cross-country approach.</p><p><strong>Design: </strong>Observational study using longitudinal data from the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE) between 2004 and 2020.</p><p><strong>Setting: </strong>We fit the distribution of the FI by Generalized Additive Models for Location, Scale, and Shape (GAMLSS), assessed the role of sex (male/female), education (in years), and migration status (migrant/non-migrant), and estimated the longitudinal percentiles of frailty using a consistent cross-country approach for 16 countries.</p><p><strong>Participants: </strong>Individuals aged ≥65 years (N = 42,951) at study entry.</p><p><strong>Measurements: </strong>Frailty index (FI) based on the accumulation of deficits in 40 items.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>The results show that education is protective against frailty in all countries (a decrease of 1.1 pp. in Switzerland to 5.7 pp. in Slovenia, all p < 0.001). In most countries, women are frailer than men and migrant individuals have higher levels of frailty than non-migrants. FI trajectories showed heterogeneity across countries. The quantiles for women and migrants suggest frailer trajectories than men and non-migrants respectively.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Findings from this cross-national comparison provide a framework within which the longitudinal norms of frailty trajectories from different countries can be interpreted.</p>","PeriodicalId":51629,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Frailty & Aging","volume":"15 3","pages":"100144"},"PeriodicalIF":3.3,"publicationDate":"2026-03-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13019775/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147500692","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"The mediating role of chronic disease in socioeconomic inequalities in frailty: A longitudinal cohort study of older adults in Lausanne, Switzerland.","authors":"Carlos de Mestral, Saman Khalatbari-Soltani, Patrick Bodenmann, Yves Henchoz, Mauricio Avendano","doi":"10.1016/j.tjfa.2026.100134","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.tjfa.2026.100134","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Frailty is a major public health concern in aging populations. Socioeconomic disadvantage increases the risk of frailty, yet the mechanisms underlying this association remain unclear.</p><p><strong>Objectives: </strong>To examine the mediating role of chronic diseases in the longitudinal association between socioeconomic disadvantage and frailty.</p><p><strong>Design: </strong>Population-based cohort study.</p><p><strong>Setting: </strong>Lausanne, Switzerland.</p><p><strong>Participants: </strong>4731 community-dwelling adults aged 65-70 years at recruitment (2004, 2010, and 2014), followed for up to 16 years, as part of the Lausanne Cohort 65+.</p><p><strong>Intervention: </strong>None.</p><p><strong>Measurements: </strong>Socioeconomic disadvantage was assessed using indicators of education, occupation, income, health insurance subsidy, and financial strain. Frailty was measured using the Fried phenotype (unintentional weight loss, exhaustion, low physical activity, weakness, and slow walking speed). Chronic conditions (obesity, diabetes, hypertension, cardiovascular and respiratory disease, and multimorbidity [≥2 conditions]) were assessed at baseline using standardized self-reported physician diagnoses. Counterfactual mediation using Cox proportional hazards models estimated the proportion of the socioeconomic disadvantage-frailty association mediated by each condition.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Socioeconomic disadvantage was associated with a 1.5-2.5-fold higher risk of incident frailty. Obesity mediated 13-55% of this association, diabetes 11-22%, and multimorbidity 21-39%, whereas hypertension, cardiovascular, and respiratory disease showed minimal or no mediation.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Chronic diseases-particularly obesity and diabetes-partly explain the long-term impact of socioeconomic disadvantage on frailty, underscoring stark inequities in healthy aging. Early detection and management of these conditions in socioeconomically vulnerable older adults, alongside population-level prevention and efforts to address adverse socioeconomic conditions as root causes, could help reduce these inequalities.</p>","PeriodicalId":51629,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Frailty & Aging","volume":"15 3","pages":"100134"},"PeriodicalIF":3.3,"publicationDate":"2026-03-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13019564/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147494337","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"OLD DOG - Validating the dog as an animal model for human aging studies.","authors":"Polina Zemko, Federico Bonsembiante, Marco Canevelli, Simona Buscarnera, Matteo Cesari, Tommaso Banzato","doi":"10.1016/j.tjfa.2026.100145","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.tjfa.2026.100145","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Companion dogs represent a valuable and emerging translational model for human aging, as they share the human environment, receive comparable medical care - yet have much shorter lifespans. Despite their potential, a validated set of canine biomarkers of aging has not yet been established. The OLD-DOG Project, launched in 2023 at the University of Padua's Veterinary Teaching Hospital, is a 30-month prospective study designed to identify and validate biomarkers of aging in companion dogs and to assess their predictive value for healthspan and lifespan, thereby evaluating the suitability of dogs as models for human aging research. A cohort of 209 privately owned dogs aged  ≥ 5 years was enrolled and underwent comprehensive evaluations every six months, including clinical examinations, physical fitness testing, blood and fecal sampling, and owner questionnaires. Collected data encompass physiological, biochemical, hematological, and behavioral parameters, as well as microbiota profiles, telomere length, and DNA methylation patterns. Surplus biological material is stored to establish a long-term biobank. Preliminary cross-sectional analyses have identified consistent age-related patterns across multiple domains, including hematological and biochemical indices, inflammatory markers, and measures of physical and cognitive performance. Ongoing longitudinal analyses aim to determine the predictive value of these candidate biomarkers for morbidity and mortality, as well as to assess the influence of environmental and lifestyle factors on aging trajectories. Ultimately, the project seeks to construct an integrative model of biological age in dogs, thereby strengthening their value as a robust translational model for human aging research.</p>","PeriodicalId":51629,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Frailty & Aging","volume":"15 3","pages":"100145"},"PeriodicalIF":3.3,"publicationDate":"2026-03-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13019545/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147491695","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Low relative sit-to-stand power in Colombian older adults: Cut-off points and associations with frailty and functional decline.","authors":"Robinson Ramírez-Vélez, Miguel Germán Borda, Juan Carlos Calderón-González, Albeiro Dávila-Grisales, Gonzalo Romero-Martínez, Mikel Izquierdo, Miguel A Pérez-Sousa","doi":"10.1016/j.tjfa.2026.100141","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.tjfa.2026.100141","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objectives: </strong>To examine the association between relative sit-to-stand (STS) power and age, establish sex-specific cut-off points, and evaluate their associations with adverse outcomes in Colombian older adults.</p><p><strong>Design: </strong>Cross-sectional, population-based study.</p><p><strong>Setting: </strong>Health, Well-being, and Aging Study (SABE-Colombia, 2014-2015).</p><p><strong>Participants: </strong>3051 community-dwelling adults aged ≥60 years (56.6 % women; mean age 68.6 ± 6.4 years).</p><p><strong>Measurements: </strong>Relative STS power (W·kg⁻¹) was estimated using a validated equation. Quantile regression examined age-related changes across percentiles (Q10-Q90). Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves with the Youden index determined cut-off points. Age-adjusted logistic regression tested associations with frailty, functionality as gait speed and handgrip strength (HGS), and depression.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Optimal cut-offs for low relative STS power were 2.11 W·kg⁻¹ for men and 1.63 W·kg⁻¹ for women. Prevalence of low STS power was 34.3 % in men and 34.8 % in women, increasing with age in both sexes. Quantile regression revealed steeper age-related declines at higher percentiles, particularly among men. Low relative STS power was significantly associated with frailty and low functionality.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>Relative STS power is a simple, clinically feasible biomarker to identify functional impairment in older adults. The sex-specific thresholds reported for Colombian populations reflect demographic differences in muscle physiology and decline. Their integration into geriatric practice may enhance early detection, guide preventive interventions, and ultimately improve health outcomes in aging populations.</p>","PeriodicalId":51629,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Frailty & Aging","volume":"15 3","pages":"100141"},"PeriodicalIF":3.3,"publicationDate":"2026-03-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13019548/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147492240","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Association of accelerated biological aging and frailty with the risk of severe infection: a prospective study in the UK Biobank.","authors":"Runzhi Bai, Lulu Pan, Yifang Huang, Zixuan Jiang, Jing Wang, Yahang Liu, Chen Huang, Xueying Zheng, Yongfu Yu, Qingqing Li, Guoyou Qin","doi":"10.1016/j.tjfa.2025.100118","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.tjfa.2025.100118","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Infectious diseases contribute substantially to morbidity and mortality among aging populations, yet the impact of biological aging on severe infection risk remains unclear.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Cox proportional hazards models estimated hazard ratios (HRs) and 95 % confidence intervals (CIs) for associations of accelerated biological aging (measured by KDM-BA and PhenoAge) and frailty index (FI) with overall and type-specific severe infections. Life expectancy differences by biological aging status were assessed. Bivariate response surface models evaluated combined effects of FI and two biological age acceleration indicators on severe infections.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>KDM-BA acceleration (HR: 1.18; 95 % CI: 1.16 to 1.19) and PhenoAge acceleration (HR: 1.27; 95 % CI: 1.25 to 1.29) were associated with increased severe infection risk. Higher FI levels showed progressively greater risk, with HRs (95 % CIs) of 1.40 (1.38 to 1.43), 2.01 (1.96 to 2.06), 2.64 (2.53 to 2.76) and 3.37 (2.96 to 3.83) for FI categories 0.1 -< 0.2, 0.2 -< 0.3, 0.3 -< 0.4, and ≥ 0.4 versus FI < 0.1. Associations varied by infection type: KDM-BA acceleration and PhenoAge acceleration showed the strongest associations with respiratory infections, whereas the frailty index was most associated with digestive infections. Significant combined effects of FI and biological age accelerations further increased risk. Biologically younger individuals had longer life expectancy: +1.59 years (95 % CI: 1.40 to 1.77) for KDM-BA acceleration and +2.2 years (95 % CI: 2.00 to 2.40) for PhenoAge acceleration.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>Accelerated biological aging and frailty were significantly associated with increased risks of overall and type-specific severe infections. These findings suggest that integrating biological aging assessments into routine healthcare could improve infection risk stratification and guide targeted prevention strategies.</p>","PeriodicalId":51629,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Frailty & Aging","volume":"15 1","pages":"100118"},"PeriodicalIF":3.3,"publicationDate":"2026-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12757646/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145745702","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Comprehensive geriatric assessment and primary care based interventions for managing frailty in older adults: An evidence map.","authors":"Smiteerekha Sahoo, Tanveer Rehman, Md Shaney Ali, Haimanti Bhattacharya, Kavitha Ak, Rasmiranjan Nayak, Ashok Kumar Mahakuda, Sanghamitra Pati, Jaya Singh Kshatri","doi":"10.1016/j.tjfa.2025.100104","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.tjfa.2025.100104","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Frailty is a geriatric syndrome leading to adverse health outcomes, but can be managed through targeted interventions and potentially reversed. Primary care settings play a pivotal role in identifying and addressing frailty. This review aims to assess the effective primary care interventions and strategies to manage frailty.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>This review mapped evidence to evaluate systematic reviews of randomized controlled trials in older adults (≥60 years) on primary care-based interventions for managing frailty. Data were extracted from databases including MEDLINE, Embase, CINAHL, PsycINFO, and Cochrane CENTRAL, covering publications up to September 11, 2024. Interventions in primary care, community-based, or home-based settings were included, excluding hospitalized or bedridden individuals. The AMSTAR 2 tool assessed review quality, and interventions were categorized by type, setting, and effectiveness.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>From the 3152 studies extracted, 17 systematic reviews met the inclusion criteria. Interventions were classified into physical, nutritional, pharmacological, e-health/telemedicine, and multicomponent approaches. Multicomponent interventions, combining physical, nutritional, and cognitive strategies, demonstrated effectiveness, with significant benefits reported in 15 reviews. Community and home-based settings dominated, emphasizing accessibility. However, the quality of evidence varied, with seven reviews rated as critically low and six as high. Most studies were conducted in high-income countries, limiting their generalizability to LMICs.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>Multicomponent interventions delivered in community settings show significant promise for managing frailty in older adults. However, evidence gaps suggest the need for context-specific research to adapt these interventions into primary care, which can improve the health status and quality of life for ageing populations globally.</p>","PeriodicalId":51629,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Frailty & Aging","volume":"15 1","pages":"100104"},"PeriodicalIF":3.3,"publicationDate":"2026-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12757642/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145752278","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Impacts of ESOGER home-based care and health services on spousal caregivers' anxiety, quality of life and burden: Findings from a pilot randomized controlled trial.","authors":"Olivier Beauchet, Camille Normandin, Pascal Mathieu, Kevin Galéry","doi":"10.1016/j.tjfa.2025.100114","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.tjfa.2025.100114","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Spousal caregivers of ill older adults face increasing risks of deteriorating mental health and burden. \"Socio-Geriatric Evaluation\" (ESOGER) is home-based care and health services for ill older adults. This study aimed to examine changes in anxiety, quality of life and burden over a 3-month period in spousal caregivers of ill older adults who benefits from ESOGER home health care and support services.</p><p><strong>Methods/design: </strong>A randomized controlled trial (RCT) with two parallel arms enrolled 42 spousal caregivers distributed equally between the intervention group and the control group. The intervention consisted of ESOGER, a telehealth-based home care program that evaluates older adults' health and social needs and provides personalized recommendations and referrals to health and community services to ill spouses, implemented through the Canadian Red Cross. Spousal caregivers were assessed at baseline (M0) and at three months (M3). Anxiety was evaluated using a visual analogue scale (VAS) ranging from 0 (no anxiety) to 10 (severe anxiety) and the EuroQol-5D assessed quality of life using. Burden was measured using the 4-item Zarit scale.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Anxiety (P < 0.001) and burden (P = 0.003) increased significantly, and the quality of life decreased (P = 0.018) in the control group at M3 compared to M0. In the intervention group anxiety decreased significantly (P < 0.001) over the 3-months follow-up. Only burden was significantly lower in the intervention group compared to the control group (P = 0.022) at M3. The changes in scores of the 4-item Zarit scale between M0 and M3 (P = 0.011) and of the EQ-5D visual analogue scale (P = 0.024) were significantly different between groups, showing an improvement in the intervention group.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>This study highlights the positive impact of ESOGER home-based care on spousal caregivers, showing reduced anxiety and burden while improving quality of life. These findings underscore the importance of structured home care services in supporting caregivers' well-being and sustaining home-based care for older adults.</p>","PeriodicalId":51629,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Frailty & Aging","volume":"15 1","pages":"100114"},"PeriodicalIF":3.3,"publicationDate":"2026-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12757627/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145745820","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Transitions in frailty states and associated factors: a multistate analysis of the Italian Longitudinal Study on Aging population-based cohort.","authors":"Lucia Galluzzo, Marianna Noale, Stefania Maggi, Marzia Baldereschi, Antonio Di Carlo, Nicola Veronese, Marco Silano","doi":"10.1016/j.tjfa.2025.100117","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.tjfa.2025.100117","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Frailty is recognized as a dynamic and potentially reversible process, but comprehensive studies on its progression/regression are rare.</p><p><strong>Objective: </strong>To investigate the frequency and characteristics of frailty transitions over time in a representative sample of older Italians.</p><p><strong>Design and participants: </strong>As secondary analysis of the Italian Longitudinal Study on Aging (ILSA) population-based cohort, we studied all participants (n = 1339; women 47.5 %, age 72.7 ± 5.1) with complete information on changes in frailty status (or death) between consecutive ILSA surveys (T0, T1, T2).</p><p><strong>Measurements: </strong>Frailty was operationalized according to Fried phenotype, analysing transitions between frailty, or death, during T0-T1, T1-T2 (4-, 5-year length). Transition probability at 1, 3, 5 years was estimated through non-hidden continuous-time Markov models, with death as absorbing state. Factors influencing transitions were evaluated with Cox proportional Hazard Ratios (HR).</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>We observed 1931 transitions between frailty states and 241 to death. The estimated probability of: maintaining a stable frailty status (∼80 % within 1 year) halved at 5 years; worsening increased steeply over time and was always greater among women; improvement/remission was twice higher at medium (about 20 % among Frail->preFrail women, preFrail->nonFrail men) than short term. Depressive symptoms were the strongest predictor of worsening [nonFrail->Frail: women HR 3.63 (95 %CI 1.45-9.10), men HR 3.78 (95 %CI 2.0-7.13)]. Not having a spouse/partner was associated with a 30 % reduced probability of pre-frailty remission in both sexes.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Our findings confirm the fluctuating nature of frailty with an ample chance of remission/improvement, highlighting the importance of a prompt, multidimensional preventive approach, including psycho-social dimensions.</p>","PeriodicalId":51629,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Frailty & Aging","volume":"15 1","pages":"100117"},"PeriodicalIF":3.3,"publicationDate":"2026-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12856321/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145994754","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}