Reliability of the modified Frailty Index (mFI) for intervention and continued surveillance in elective infrarenal abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA).

INTRODUCTION

Frailty has been proven to lead to higher morbidity and mortality rates in surgical patients, independent of age. The modified Frailty Index (mFI) is a validated means of assessing for frailty.

AIM OF STUDY

The aim of this study is to ascertain if the mFI correlates with clinician experience in turning down patients for abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) surgery and/or AAA surveillance.

METHODS

A contemporaneously recorded database of all AAA patients treated during 2017 at a large University Hospital was reviewed. Patients were categorised into the following groups; continued surveillance, turned down for surveillance, patient declined surveillance, patient offered surgery, patient turned down for surgery and patient declined surgery.

RESULTS

One hundred and forty two patients were included. Twenty-eight patients <5.5 cm were turned down for surveillance with a mFI of 0.27. Forty-one patients <5.5 cm continued with surveillance, with a mFI of 0.09 (p < 0.0001). Eighteen patients >5.5 cm were turned down for surgical intervention with a median mFI of 0.36. Forty-two patients were offered surgical intervention had a median mFI of 0.09 (p < 0.0001).

CONCLUSION

Frailty is associated with higher morbidity and mortality amongst frail patient cohorts. mFI is a valid and easy to use tool to predict perioperative outcomes in AAA intervention. It correlates well with senior, experienced clinicians' decision-making in relation to who should and who should not undergo elective AAA surgery and those patients who should have ongoing aneurysm surveillance.