Observational study for frailty load on colorectal unit
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Identification of frailty and associated factors in patients presenting for colorectal surgery
IRAS ID
171622
Contact name
Dermot Burke
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University of Leeds
Duration of Study in the UK
2 years, 10 months, 1 days
Research summary
With a growing elderly population, surgeons are tasked with a greater risk of mortality rates. However, there is a fundamental difference in the fitness of patients at different ages. What one frail patient of 50 may die of, a healthier patient of 80 may survive. Frailty is a significant issue for patient outcomes, yet frailty has yet to be universally agreed upon and identified. There are several frailty identification tools though understanding the results and their application to the patients' outcomes has yet been fully comprehended. It is our intent to apply a frailty questionnaire to patients admitted into the colorectal unit, and applying the electronic frailty index to their GP data. The questionnaire is designed from the three most commonly used frailty assessments merged into one quick questionnaire with two low-intensity physical tests. The electronic frailty index will be applied to the GP data if this is supplied, and will provide another score for the patients frailty. With the four scores of frailty, we will be able to determine which tool is the most feasible to use in the patient pathway and potentially show which tool can be most reliable. This will enable the department to optimize treatments individual to the patients' needs.
REC name
West Midlands - Edgbaston Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
15/WM/0148
Date of REC Opinion
22 Apr 2015
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion