Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2011 Nov;202(5):511-4.
doi: 10.1016/j.amjsurg.2011.06.017. Epub 2011 Sep 3.

Frailty predicts increased hospital and six-month healthcare cost following colorectal surgery in older adults

Thomas N Robinson  1 , Daniel S Wu, Gregory V Stiegmann, Marc Moss
Affiliations

Frailty predicts increased hospital and six-month healthcare cost following colorectal surgery in older adults

Thomas N Robinson et al. Am J Surg. 2011 Nov.

Abstract

Background: The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship of frailty and 6-month postoperative costs.

Methods: Subjects aged ≥ 65 years undergoing elective colorectal operations were enrolled in a prospective observational study. Frailty was assessed by a validated measure of function, cognition, nutrition, comorbidity burden, and geriatric syndromes. Frailty was quantified by summing the number of positive characteristics in each subject.

Results: Sixty subjects (mean age, 75 ± 8 years) were studied. Inpatient mortality was 2% (n = 1). Overall, 40% of subjects (n = 24) were considered nonfrail, 22% (n = 13) were prefrail, and 38% (n = 22) were frail. With advancing frailty, hospital costs increased (P < .001) and costs from discharge to 6-months increased (P < .001). Higher degrees of frailty were related to increased rates of discharge institutionalization (P < .001) and 30-day readmission (P = .044).

Conclusions: A simple, brief preoperative frailty assessment accurately forecasts increased surgical hospital costs and postdischarge to 6-month healthcare costs after colorectal operations in older adults.

PubMed Disclaimer

References

    1. Geriatric Review Syllabus - A Core Curriculum in Geriatric Medicine. 6. New York: American Geriatrics Society; 2006.
    1. Robinson TN, Wallace JI, Wu DS, et al. Accumulated Frailty Characteristics Predict Postoperative Discharge Institutionalization in the Geriatric Patient. JACS. 2011 - PMC - PubMed
    1. Health and Human Services Budget. 2011 (Accessed at http://hhs.gov/about/hhsbudget.html)
    1. Buchner DM, Wagner EH. Preventing frail health. Clin Geriatr Med. 1992;8:1–17. - PubMed
    1. Robinson TN, Eiseman B, Wallace JI, et al. Redefining geriatric preoperative assessment using frailty, disability and co-morbidity. Ann Surg. 2009;250:449–55. - PubMed

Publication types