Table 1.
Details of measures and cut-points employed for select frailty criteria
| Criterion | Measure | CHS-specified1 absolute cut-points | AL population-based relative cut-points |
|---|---|---|---|
| Slow gait | Determined by taking the better of two timed 3-meter walks. | ≥ 7 seconds2, men ≤ 173 cm ≥7 seconds, women ≤159 cm ≥ 6 seconds, men > 173 cm ≥ 6 seconds, women > 159 cm |
Slowest quartile3 of walk times: > 9 seconds, men > 10 seconds, women |
| Muscle weakness | Average of three grip strength readings using a handheld dynamometer.4 | BMI-specific thresholds: ≤ 29-32 kg, men ≤ 17-21 kg, women |
Lowest quartile‡ of grip strength readings: < 15 kg, men < 7 kg, women |
| Low physical activity | Reported minutes over two weeks per activity type - from the interRAI-AL "Exercise or Leisure Activities" 5 | Activities were mapped to Minnesota Leisure Time Activity Questionnaire.6 Kcals per week calculated based on the intensity codes: < 383 Kcals/week, men < 270 Kcals/week, women |
< 140 minutes/two weeks (< 10 minutes/day on average7) |
| Unintentional weight loss | Answer to question: "In the past year have you lost more than 10 pounds unintentionally" 8 |
Response of Yes | Response of Yes |
| Exhaustion | Answers to 3 questions: "In the past month, on average, have you been: 1) Feeling unusually tired during the day?; 2) Feeling unusually weak?; and/or, 3) Feeling an unusually low energy level?"9 |
Response of Yes to any of the 3 questions | Response of Yes to any of the 3 questions |
CHS = Cardiovascular Health Study, AL = assisted living, cm = centimeters, BMI = body mass index, kg = kilograms, kcals = kilocalories.
1 as detailed in Fried et al., 2001 [5]
2 sex and height-specific thresholds.
3 a standard cut-point [32].
4 JAMAR®, Sammons Preston Rolyan, Bolingbrook, IL.
5 include: aquasize/swimming; bowling; dancing; exercise bike/treadmill; exercise program; floor curling/lawn bowling; gardening; household chores; shuffleboard/pool; Tai chi/yoga; walking/wheeling indoors & outdoors.
6 as detailed in [45].
7 levels above this cut-point shown to be beneficial in otherwise sedentary people [33].
8 CHS also allowed actual unintentional 5% weight loss over 1-year (not assessed in ACCES).
9 CHS used 2 items from the CES-D Scale [46]: "I feel that everything I do is an effort" and "I cannot get going" (those reporting feeling this way at least 3-4 days/previous week fulfilled the criterion).