Mobility and handgrip strength but not aortic stiffness are associated with frailty in the elderly

Background and aim. Frailty and several age-related conditions are associated with morbidity and mortality. This cross-sectional study is conducted to investigate the hypothesis whether frailty is associated with impaired mobility and handgrip strength, and aortic stiffness.
Methods. A total of 117 consecutive patients of the outpatient Geriatric Clinic, were included in this study. Frailty is measured using Fried’s Frailty Index. Mobility was assessed with the Timed up And Go test and gait speed was measured with the 5 meter walk test. Handgrip strength was measured with a handheld dynamometer. Aortic stiffness was non-invasively measured by the Mobil-O-Graph and aortic Pulse Wave Velocity (aPWV) was calculated.
Results. 25% of the participants was classified as frail. Mean time for the TUG was 11,1 s (95% Confidence Interval, 9.4-12.8) for the non-frail participants, 13.5 s (12.4-14.7) for the pre-frail and 18.5 s (16.6-20.4) for the frail participants. Mean time for the 5MGS was 5.2 s (95% CI, 4.6-5.8) for the non-frail subjects, 5.8 s (5.4-6.2) for the pre-frail subjects and 9,2 s (8.5-9.9) for the frail subjects. Mean handgrip strength was 30.6 kg (95% CI, 28.3-32.9) for the non-frail, 24.8 kg (23.4-26.,3) for the pre-frail and 20.3 kg (18.1-22.5) for the frail participants. We did not find differences of aortic stiffness within groups.
Conclusion. Frail participants need significant more time to complete the Timed Up and Go test and the 5 Meter Gait Speed test, and have significant lower handgrip strength. Frail individuals do not have increased aortic stiffness.