Frailty and Multimorbidity Among Community-Dwelling Older People in Vietnam

Background/Purpose: This study aimed to identify the prevalence of frailty and multimorbidity, as well as their interrelationship, among communitydwelling older people in Vietnam. Methods: This cross-sectional study involved face-to-face interviews with community-dwelling older people who living in Ho Chi Minh City. Frailty was assessed according to Fried's criteria, and multimorbidity was defined as the coexistence of >= 2 chronic diseases. Results: The study included 598 participants (mean age: 71.2 +/- 7.8 years, 67.2% female). The prevalence of multimorbidity was 55.5%. The prevalence of frailty was 18.1%, was significantly higher among participants with multimorbidity (multimorbidity: 23.1% vs. no multimorbidity: 11.5%, p <0.001). Multivariate analysis revealed that multimorbidity was an independent factor that associated with frailty (adjusted odds ratio: 1.92, 95% confidence interval: 1.17-3.17, p =0.010). Conclusion: The prevalences of frailty and multimorbidity were very high among community-dwelling older people in Vietnam. Furthermore, multimorbidity was an independent factor that associated with frailty. Therefore, early health interventions are needed to prevent and manage both frailty and multimorbidity in this vulnerable population. (C) 2022, Asian Association for Frailty and Sarcopenia and Taiwan Association for Integrated Care. Published by Full Universe Integrated Marketing Limited.

Automated summary

This study aimed to investigate the prevalence and interrelationship between frailty and multimorbidity among community-dwelling older people in Vietnam. The results showed high prevalences of frailty and multimorbidity in this population, with multimorbidity being an independent factor associated with frailty. Therefore, early health interventions are necessary to prevent and manage frailty and multimorbidity in this vulnerable population.