Table 1.
Clinical characteristics of enrolled patients according to the frailty as assessed by the Clinical Frailty Scale (CFS) at the emergency department admission
| All cases N 424 |
CFS 1-6 N 280 |
CFS 7-9 N 144 |
P value | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Age | 85 [82–89] | 84 [81–87] | 88 [84–91] | <0.001 |
| Female | 239 (56.4%) | 167 (59.6%) | 72 (50%) | 0.037 |
| ED presentation | ||||
| Fever | 361 (85.1%) | 240 (85.7%) | 121 (84%) | 0.37 |
| Abdominal pain | 281 (66.3%) | 201 (71.8%) | 80 (55.6%) | 0.001 |
| Vomit | 209 (49.3%) | 145(51.8%) | 64 (44.4%) | 0.092 |
| Gastrointestinal bleeding | 22 (5.2%) | 16 (5.7%) | 6 (4.2%) | 0.33 |
| Treatment | ||||
| Medical treatment | 246 (58.1%) | 157 (56.1%) | 89 (61.8%) | |
| Percutaneous procedures | 18 (4.2%) | 10 (3.6%) | 8 (5.6%) | 0.17 |
| Ostomy creation | 56 (13.2%) | 31 (11.1%) | 47 (32.6%) | 0.05 |
| Surgery (overall) | 160 (37.7%) | 113 (40.3%) | 47 (32.6%) | 0.073 |
| Coexistent acute infections | ||||
| Bloodstream infection | 23 (5.4%) | 17 (6.1%) | 6 (4.2%) | 0.28 |
| Any infections | 73 (17.2%) | 40 (14.3%) | 33 (22.9%) | 0.019 |
| Comorbidities | ||||
| CCI | 6 [4–8] | 6 [4–7] | 7 [5–7] | <0.001 |
| CFS | 6 [5–7] | 5 [5–6] | 7 [7–8] | <0.001 |
| History of CAD | 60 (14.2%) | 40 (14.3%) | 20 (13.9%) | 0.52 |
| CHF | 45 (10.6%) | 23 (8.2%) | 22 (15.3%) | 0.021 |
| Cerebrovascular disease | 32 (7.5%) | 19 (6.8%) | 13 (9.0%) | 0.26 |
| Dementia | 50 (11.8%) | 16 (5.7%) | 34 (23.6%) | <0.001 |
| COPD | 58 (13.7%) | 37 (13.2%) | 21 (14.6%) | 0.401 |
| Chronic Kidney disease | 67 (15.8%) | 35 (12.5%) | 32 (22.2%) | 0.008 |
| Diabetes | 48 (11.3%) | 33 (11.8%) | 15 (10.4%) | 0.673 |
| Oncological disease | 166 (39.2%) | 106 (37.9%) | 60 (41.7%) | 0.25 |
| Metastatic Cancer | 64 (15.1%) | 28 (10%) | 36 (25%) | <0.001 |
| Aetiology | ||||
| Malignancy | 120 (28.3%) | 71 (25.4%) | 49 (34%) | 0.04 |
| Surgical adhesions | 61 (14.4%) | 50 (17.9%) | 11 (7.6%) | 0.003 |
| Hernia | 35 (8.3%) | 28 (10%) | 7 (4.9%) | 0.047 |
| Volvulus | 19 (4.5%) | 10 (3.6%) | 9 (6.3%) | 0.155 |
| Perforation | 16 (3.8%) | 11 (3.9%) | 5 (3.5%) | 0.525 |
| Outcomes | ||||
| Death (all causes) | 54 (12.7%) | 24 (8.6%) | 30 (20.8%) | <0.001 |
| Length of stay (LOS) | 8 [5–13] | 7 [4–12] | 9 [5–14] | 0.014 |
| Major complications | 84 (19.8%) | 38 (13.6%) | 46 (31.9%) | <0.001 |
Abbreviations: CCI, Charlson comorbidity index; CFS, Clinical Frailty Scale; CAD, coronary artery disease; CHF, chronic heart failure; COPD, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease