Frailty, mortality, and health-related quality of life in older Mexican Americans.

OBJECTIVES

To determine the effect of health-related quality of life (HRQOL) on the relationship between frailty status and survival in older Mexican-American adults.

DESIGN

Prospective analysis of participants in the Hispanic Established Populations for Epidemiologic Study of the Elderly.

SETTING

Urban and rural areas of five southwestern states: Arizona, California, Colorado, New Mexico, and Texas.

PARTICIPANTS

One thousand eight Mexican-American adults aged 74 to 101 interviewed between 2005 and 2006.

MEASUREMENTS

Trained interviewers collected information on patient demographics, health conditions, frailty status, HRQOL, and survival.

RESULTS

Frailty was associated with a greater odds of death (odds ratio = 2.72, 95% confidence interval = 1.5-5.1) over a period of 2 to 3 years. After adjusting for the physical component of HRQOL, being frail (as opposed to prefrail or nonfrail) was no longer significantly associated with mortality. The mental health component of HRQOL did not affect the relationship between frailty and mortality.

CONCLUSION

Older Mexican Americans identified as frail experienced poorer survival in this sample than their prefrail or nonfrail counterparts. Adjusting for the physical component of HRQOL attenuated poorer survival in persons categorized as frail.