Frailty and risk of hospitalization from COVID-19 infection among older adults : evidence from the Dutch Lifelines COVID-19 Cohort study

Background: Frailty is associated with COVID-19 severity in clinical settings. No general population-based studies on the association between actual frailty status and COVID-19 hospitalization are available. Aims: To investigate the association between frailty and the risk of COVID-19 hospitalization once infected. Methods: 440 older adults who participated in the Lifelines COVID-19 Cohort study in the Northern Netherlands and reported positive COVID-19 testing results (54.2% women, age 70 ± 4 years in 2021) were included in the analyses. COVID-19 hospitalization status was self-reported. The... Mehr ...

Verfasser: Zhu, Yinjie
Sealy, Martine J.
Jager-Wittenaar, Harriët
Mierau, Jochen O.
Bakker, Stephan J.L.
Navis, Gerjan J.
Boezen, H.M.
Franke, H.L.
Dekens, Jackie
Deelen, Patrick
Lanting, Pauline
Vonk, Judith M.
Nolte, Ilja
Ori, Anil P.S.
Claringbould, Annique
Boulogne, Floranne
Dijkema, Marjolein X.L.
Wiersma, Henry H.
Warmerdam, Robert
Jankipersadsing, Soesma A.
van Blokland, Irene
de Bock, Geertruida H.
Rosmalen, Judith G.M.
Wijmenga, Cisca
Dokumenttyp: article/Letter to editor
Erscheinungsdatum: 2022
Schlagwörter: COVID-19 / Coronavirus / Frailty / Groningen Frailty Indicator
Sprache: Englisch
Permalink: https://search.fid-benelux.de/Record/base-29041406
Datenquelle: BASE; Originalkatalog
Powered By: BASE
Link(s) : https://research.wur.nl/en/publications/frailty-and-risk-of-hospitalization-from-covid-19-infection-among

Background: Frailty is associated with COVID-19 severity in clinical settings. No general population-based studies on the association between actual frailty status and COVID-19 hospitalization are available. Aims: To investigate the association between frailty and the risk of COVID-19 hospitalization once infected. Methods: 440 older adults who participated in the Lifelines COVID-19 Cohort study in the Northern Netherlands and reported positive COVID-19 testing results (54.2% women, age 70 ± 4 years in 2021) were included in the analyses. COVID-19 hospitalization status was self-reported. The Groningen Frailty Indicator (GFI) was derived from 15 self-reported questionnaire items related to daily activities, health problems, and psychosocial functioning, with a score ≥ 4 indicating frailty. Both frailty and COVID-19 hospitalization were assessed in the same period. Poisson regression models with robust standard errors were used to analyze the associations between frailty and COVID-19 hospitalization. Results: Of 440 older adults included, 42 were hospitalized because of COVID-19 infection. After adjusting for sociodemographic and lifestyle factors, a higher risk of COVID-19 hospitalization was observed for frail individuals (risk ratio (RR) [95% CI] 1.97 [1.06–3.67]) compared to those classified as non-frail. Discussion: Frailty was positively associated with COVID-19 hospitalization once infected, independent of sociodemographic and lifestyle factors. Future research on frailty and COVID-19 should consider biomarkers of aging and frailty to understand the pathophysiological mechanisms and manifestations between frailty and COVID-19 outcomes. Conclusions: Frailty was positively associated with the risk of hospitalization among older adults that were infected with COVID-19. Public health strategies for frailty prevention in older adults need to be advocated, as it is helpful to reduce the burden of the healthcare system, particularly during a pandemic like COVID-19.