Table 3.
Comparison of health-deficits across age categories among frail only participants defined using the frailty index
| Variable | 18–49 years (n = 574) |
50–64 years (n = 254) |
65+ years (n = 125) |
Chi-Square or ANOVA F-Test P-value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Age | 37.90 (1.04) | 57.90 (0.42) | 72.07 (0.26) | <0.001 |
| Sex (% male) | 327 (57.0%) | 135 (53.2%) | 60 (47.7%) | 0.399 |
| Diabetes | 101 (17.5%) | 104 (41.1%) | 56 (44.5%) | <0.001 |
| Thyroid problem | 119 (20.7%) | 53 (20.7%) | 29 (23.5%) | 0.841 |
| Cancer | 41 (7.2%) | 61 (24.00%) | 27 (21.3%) | <0.001 |
| Strokea | - | - | - | - |
| Heart diseasea | - | - | - | - |
| Arthritis | 136 (23.8%) | 150 (59.0%) | 87 (69.4%) | <0.001 |
| Persistent cough | 281 (48.9%) | 85 (33.4%) | 42 (33.3%) | 0.010 |
| Known kidney dysfunction | 44 (7.7%) | 23 (9.1%) | 15 (12.3%) | 0.442 |
| Poor health | 333 (58.00%) | 143 (56.3%) | 63 (50.1%) | 0.581 |
| Poor health compared to 1 year ago | 320 (55.7%) | 114 (44.8%) | 46 (36.9%) | 0.033 |
| COPDa | - | - | - | - |
| Asthma | 244 (42.6%) | 62 (24.4%) | 19 (15.4%) | <0.001 |
| Liver disease | 51 (8.9%) | 29 (11.0%) | 10 (7.9%) | 0.549 |
| Trouble sleeping | 459 (79.9%) | 194 (76.3%) | 85 (67.9%) | 0.213 |
| Resting HR (beats/min) | 70.35 (1.17) | 71.08 (1.25) | 65.55 (0.66) | <0.001 |
| Systolic BP (mmHg) | 114.53 (2.76) | 120.11 (1.90) | 125.97 (1.27) | <0.001 |
| Diastolic BP (mmHg) | 74.52 (1.87) | 73.42 (1.04) | 68.48 (0.60) | <0.001 |
| eGFR (ml/min) | 108.62 (2.31) | 94.16 (1.30) | 76.13 (2.15) | <0.001 |
| Albumin (g/L) | 45.26 (0.83) | 44.20 (0.35) | 43.33 (0.29) | <0.001 |
| Haemoglobin (g/L) | 142.82 (2.44) | 142.02 (0.95) | 135.73 (1.70) | <0.001 |
| Calcium (mmol/L) | 2.44 (0.02) | 2.43 (0.01) | 2.42 (0.01) | 0.023 |
| Phosphate (mmol/L) | 1.31 (0.03) | 1.30 (0.02) | 1.24 (0.01) | <0.001 |
| RBC count (10–12/L) | 4.71 (0.13) | 4.69 (0.08) | 4.43 (0.05) | <0.001 |
| RBC distribution width (%) | 13.33 (0.19) | 13.27 (0.18) | 13.54 (0.09) | 0.043 |
| Aspartate Aminotransferase (U/L) | 37.09 (2.52) | 34.68 (1.67) | 30.47 (0.87) | <0.001 |
| HbA1C (%) | 6.12% (0.15%) | 6.6% (0.15%) | 6.5% (0.08%) | <0.001 |
| Plasma glucose (mmol/L) | 5.97 (0.32) | 6.52 (0.25) | 6.50 (0.19) | 0.037 |
a n-value too low in the 18–49 category and could not report on numbers based on Canadian Health Measures ethics. Categorical variables are displayed as frequency (%) and continuous variables are shown as mean (standard deviation). Frailty was defined as having 3–5 of the Fried criteria. COPD chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, HR heart rate, BP blood pressure, eGFR estimated glomerular filtration rate, RBC red blood cell