Simple Health Measures in Older Cardiology Patients
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Simple Health Measures in Older Cardiology Patients
IRAS ID
217626
Contact name
Atul Anand
Contact email
Duration of Study in the UK
0 years, 6 months, 6 days
Research summary
The pressures on hospital heart specialist services are increasing, driven by an ageing population and a greater spectrum of interventions for heart disease. Targeting follow-up and heart rehabilitation after hospital discharge is therefore complex. Traditional models for identifying patients at risk of poor outcomes have relied on age and knowledge of other existing health conditions (comorbidity), but frailty is increasingly being recognised as an objective measure in older patients.
Frailty is a biological syndrome describing the loss of strength, endurance and physiological reserve across multiple systems that increases vulnerability for developing dependency or death. It becomes more common with age, but is a very distinct concept of biological health rather than chronological years. Frailty also captures more than just recognised illness; a quarter of those affected have no notable comorbidity or disability.
In this simple study, we intend to measure frailty in 200 older patients (aged over 70) who are ready for discharge from hospital cardiology services at the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh. We expect to complete recruitment within 6 months. We will compare different measures of frailty to identify which tools best predict the risk of poor patient outcomes, including readmission to hospital or death. In this way, we aim to inform the future discharge process for older patients from cardiology, perhaps targeting the extra support of rehabilitation services to those at highest risk of poor outcomes.
REC name
South East Scotland REC 02
REC reference
16/SS/0208
Date of REC Opinion
25 Nov 2016
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion