Frailty and Cardiometabolic Outcomes: A Narrative Review
Abstract
1. Introduction
2. Epidemiology of Frailty and Cardiovascular Disease
3. Mechanistic Pathways Linking Frailty and Cardiovascular Outcomes
4. Clinical Outcomes Associated with Frailty in Cardiovascular Disease
5. Prognostic Value of Frailty
6. Clinical Implications
7. Interventions Targeting Frailty and Cardiovascular Risk
8. Conclusions
Author Contributions
Funding
Institutional Review Board Statement
Informed Consent Statement
Data Availability Statement
Conflicts of Interest
Abbreviations
| ADL | Activities of Daily Living |
| CABG | Coronary Artery Bypass Graft |
| CKM | Cardiovascular–Kidney–Metabolic |
| CMD | Cardiometabolic Disease |
| CMM | Cardiometabolic Multimorbidity |
| CVD | Cardiovascular Disease |
| ICFSR | International Conference of Frailty and Sarcopenia Research |
| MACE | Major Adverse Cardiovascular Events |
| NSTEMI | Non-ST Elevation Myocardial Infarction |
| PCI | Percutaneous Coronary Intervention |
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| Origin/Key Reference | Fried et al., 2001 [11] (Cardiovascular Health Study) | Rockwood & Mitnitski, 2001 [14] (Canadian Study of Health and Aging) |
|---|---|---|
| Conceptual Basis | Frailty as a biologic syndrome of decreased physiologic reserve and resistance to stressors | Frailty as an accumulation of health deficits across multiple systems |
| Measurement Approach | Uses a predefined set of physical indicators | Quantifies frailty by counting deficits across a broad range of variables |
| Common Criteria/Components | Unintentional weight loss, exhaustion, weakness, slow walking speed, low physical activity | Includes comorbidities, symptoms, signs, disabilities, and lab abnormalities (often 30+ variables) |
| Assessment Tool | Fried Frailty Phenotype (FFP) | Frailty Index (FI) |
| Scoring System | Categorizes individuals as robust, prefrail, or frail based on number of criteria present (0, 1–2, >3) | Provides a continuous score (ratio of deficits present + total deficits assessed) |
| Focus | Physical and performance-based domains | Global, multidimensional health deficits |
| Strengths | Simple, standardized, and predictive of adverse outcomes; clinically intuitive | Captures gradations of vulnerability and better discriminates between pre-frail and mildly frail states; highly predictive of mortality and institutionalization |
| Limitations | Narrow focus on physical function; may overlook cognitive and social dimensions; may underestimate frailty on the lower end of the frailty spectrum | Data-intensive; may be less practical for bedside use |
| Clinical Use | Often applied in geriatric or cardiovascular populations to stratify risk before interventions. | Used in epidemiologic studies and electronic health record-based frailty measurement |
| Recommendation | Quality of Evidence |
|---|---|
| Address polypharmacy, sarcopenia, reversible causes of weight loss, and causes of chronic fatigue | Very Low |
| Individuals with severe frailty should be referred to a geriatrician | No Data |
| Offer a multi-component physical activity program with a progressive, resistance-training component | Moderate |
| Protein/caloric supplementation should be paired with a physical activity program, especially for persons with frailty and concomitant weight loss or undernutrition | Low |
| Current pharmacologic therapies are not recommended for routine management of frailty | Low |
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Foroshani, S.; Tang, K.S.; Wong, N.D. Frailty and Cardiometabolic Outcomes: A Narrative Review. J. Clin. Med. 2026, 15, 1348. https://doi.org/10.3390/jcm15041348
Foroshani S, Tang KS, Wong ND. Frailty and Cardiometabolic Outcomes: A Narrative Review. Journal of Clinical Medicine. 2026; 15(4):1348. https://doi.org/10.3390/jcm15041348
Chicago/Turabian StyleForoshani, Saam, Kevin S. Tang, and Nathan D. Wong. 2026. "Frailty and Cardiometabolic Outcomes: A Narrative Review" Journal of Clinical Medicine 15, no. 4: 1348. https://doi.org/10.3390/jcm15041348
APA StyleForoshani, S., Tang, K. S., & Wong, N. D. (2026). Frailty and Cardiometabolic Outcomes: A Narrative Review. Journal of Clinical Medicine, 15(4), 1348. https://doi.org/10.3390/jcm15041348
