Relationship Between Frailty and Quality of Life in a Community of Older Adults in Northern Portugal
摘要
Life expectancy for people aged 65 and over in Portugal has risen to 81.9 years, making it one of the highest cities in the European Union. As a result, the prevalence of frailty among older adults has increased. Frailty is a biological geriatric syndrome characterized by the decline in physiological reserves and resistance to stress factors leading to physical, mental, and emotional deficits. This condition is closely related to the perception of quality of life, which is a priority for public health. The aim of this cross-sectional descriptive observational study was to explore the relationship between frailty and quality of life in older adults. Involved 92 subjects (average age 76.0 ± 7.5) from the village of Amares in northern Portugal. Data were collected on socio-demographic characteristics, frailty, and quality of life. The statistical analysis was carried out using IBM®SPSS® Software, version 27 for descriptive and inductive statistics, considering statistically significant associations for p-value < 0.05. The results obtained, analyzed by age groups, revealed statistically significant correlations, mostly low negative and positive, between the domains of the SF-36 quality of life test and the Groningen Frailty Indicator. Moderate correlations were observed only in the areas of physical functioning, vitality, and mental health within the SF-36 and the Groningen Indicator. Assessing quality of life and frailty is essential for developing effective strategies to prevent and manage frailty, ultimately improving disease progression and treatment.