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. 2024 Oct;15(5):1169-1185.
doi: 10.1007/s41999-024-01013-x. Epub 2024 Jul 26.

Interventions to prevent the onset of frailty in adults aged 60 and older (PRAE-Frail): a systematic review and network meta-analysis

Annette Eidam  1 , Jane Durga  2 , Jürgen M Bauer  2   3 , Samuel Zimmermann  4 , Johannes A Vey  4 , Kilian Rapp  5 , Michael Schwenk  6 , Matteo Cesari  7 , Petra Benzinger  2   8
Affiliations

Interventions to prevent the onset of frailty in adults aged 60 and older (PRAE-Frail): a systematic review and network meta-analysis

Annette Eidam et al. Eur Geriatr Med. 2024 Oct.

Abstract

Purpose: Frailty in older adults is associated with multiple adverse health outcomes, while evidence on its successful prevention has been scarce. Therefore, we analyzed the effectiveness of different interventions for the prevention of frailty onset.

Methods: In this systematic review, eight databases were searched for randomized controlled trials of interventions in non-frail (i.e., robust or pre-frail) adults aged ≥ 60 years that assessed frailty incidence at follow-up. Additive component network meta-analysis (CNMA) was conducted to isolate the effect of different intervention types on the main outcome of frailty incidence, reporting relative risk (RR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI). The effect on gait speed was analyzed as an additional outcome using a classic network meta-analysis and the standardized mean difference (SMD) with 95% CI.

Results: We screened 24,263 records and identified 11 eligible trials. Nine trials (842 participants, all categorized according to the physical phenotype) in pre-frail (seven RCTs) and robust/pre-frail (two RCTs) older adults were included in the CNMA. Physical exercise significantly reduced frailty incidence at follow-up (RR 0.26, 95% CI 0.08; 0.83), while this was not found for nutritional interventions (RR 1.16, 95% CI 0.33; 4.10). Interventions based on physical exercise also improved gait speed (SMD 1.55, 95% CI 1.16; 1.95). In addition, 22 eligible trial protocols without published results were identified.

Conclusion: Interventions based on physical exercise appear to be effective in preventing the onset of frailty in older adults. Although the available data are still limited, results from ongoing trials may add to the body of evidence in the foreseeable future.

Keywords: Frailty prevention; Geriatrics; Older adults; Pre-frailty.

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Conflict of interest statement

Declarations. Conflict of interest: The authors declare no conflict of interest. Ethical approval: Since this review consists of publicly available materials, it did not require ethical approval. Informed consent: Not applicable.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
PRISMA flow diagram of the screening and selection process. Adapted from [27]
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Geometry of the network for a the frailty outcome, b the frailty outcome in trials with a duration of intervention ≤ 16 weeks, and c for the gait speed outcome. CGA comprehensive geriatric assessment, PC control (placebo, usual care, minimally or likely ineffective control intervention)
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Relative risk of frailty onset for the different intervention types in the network meta-analysis (forest plot). CGA comprehensive geriatric assessment, CI confidence interval, CNMA component network meta-analysis, NMA network meta-analysis, PC control (placebo, usual care, minimally or likely ineffective control intervention), RR relative risk
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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