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. 2016 Mar;31(3):345-52.
doi: 10.3346/jkms.2016.31.3.345. Epub 2016 Feb 4.

Prevalence of Frailty and Aging-Related Health Conditions in Older Koreans in Rural Communities: a Cross-Sectional Analysis of the Aging Study of Pyeongchang Rural Area

Hee-Won Jung  1 , Il-Young Jang  2 , Young Soo Lee  3 , Chang Ki Lee  4 , Eun-Il Cho  5 , Woo Young Kang  5 , Jeoung Hee Chae  6 , Eun Ju Lee  3 , Dae Hyun Kim  7
Affiliations

Prevalence of Frailty and Aging-Related Health Conditions in Older Koreans in Rural Communities: a Cross-Sectional Analysis of the Aging Study of Pyeongchang Rural Area

Hee-Won Jung et al. J Korean Med Sci. 2016 Mar.

Abstract

Frailty has been previously studied in Western countries and the urban Korean population; however, the burden of frailty and geriatric conditions in the aging populations of rural Korean communities had not yet been determined. Thus, we established a population-based prospective study of adults aged ≥ 65 years residing in rural communities of Korea between October 2014 and December 2014. All participants underwent comprehensive geriatric assessment that encompassed the assessment of cognitive and physical function, depression, nutrition, and body composition using bioimpedance analysis. We determined the prevalence of frailty based on the Cardiovascular Health Study (CHS) and Korean version of FRAIL (K-FRAIL) criteria, as well as geriatric conditions. We recruited 382 adults (98% of eligible adults; mean age: 74 years; 56% women). Generally, sociodemographic characteristics were similar to those of the general rural Korean population. Common geriatric conditions included instrumental activity of daily living disability (39%), malnutrition risk (38%), cognitive dysfunction (33%), multimorbidity (32%), and sarcopenia (28%), while dismobility (8%), incontinence (8%), and polypharmacy (3%) were less common conditions. While more individuals were classified as frail according to the K-FRAIL criteria (27%) than the CHS criteria (17%), the CHS criteria were more strongly associated with prevalent geriatric conditions. Older Koreans living in rural communities have a significant burden of frailty and geriatric conditions that increase the risk of functional decline, poor quality of life, and mortality. The current study provides a basis to guide public health professionals and policy-makers in prioritizing certain areas of care and designing effective public health interventions to promote healthy aging of this vulnerable population.

Keywords: Aged; Disability; Frailty; Geriatrics; Population Health; Sarcopenia.

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Conflict of interest statement

DISCLOSURE: Dr. Dae Hyun Kim is supported by a KL2 Medical Research Investigator Training award from Harvard Catalyst/The Harvard Clinical and Translational Science Center (National Center for Research Resources and the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences, NIH Award 1KL2 TR001100-01). Dr. Young Soo Lee, one of coauthors of this study, donated the expense for this field work but his donation made no influence on research and publication integrity. All of other authors have no potential conflicts of interest to disclose.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Geographic location of Pyeongchang in Korea. (A) This figure shows the location of Pyeongchang-gun in relation to Seoul in Korea. (B, C) The Aging Study of Pyeongchang Rural Area cohort was based on the 2 rural communities, Haanmi-ri and Gaesu-ri of Daehwa-Myeon in Pyeongchang-gun.
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Recruitment of the Aging Study of Pyeongchang Rural Area Cohort. NHS, National Healthcare Service
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Number of geriatric conditions in the Aging Study of Pyeongchang Rural Area Cohort. The geriatric conditions considered were multimorbidity, sarcopenia, activity of daily living disability, instrumental activity of daily living disability, cognitive dysfunction, depression, dismobility, fall in the past year, at risk for malnutrition, polypharmacy, and incontinence. The definition of these conditions is given in Table 1.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

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