Among 814 adults aged ≥40 years with congenital heart disease, 41.9% were prefrail, 5.8% were frail, and 38.8% had cognitive dysfunction, with frailty associated with older age and comorbidities.
Cross-Sectional (n=814)
Yes
A significant proportion of middle-aged and older adults with congenital heart disease experience frailty and cognitive dysfunction, even those with mild defects, emphasizing the importance of routine screening.
BACKGROUND Life expectancy of patients with congenital heart disease (CHD) has increased rapidly, resulting in a growing and aging population. Recent studies have shown that older people with CHD have higher morbidity, health care use, and mortality. To maintain longevity and quality of life, understanding their evolving medical and psychosocial challenges is essential. OBJECTIVES The authors describe the frailty and cognitive profile of middle-aged and older adults with CHD to identify predictor variables and to explore the relationship with hospital admissions and outpatient visits. METHODS Using a cross-sectional, multicentric design, we included 814 patients aged ≥40 years from 11 countries. Frailty phenotype was determined using the Fried method. Cognitive function was assessed by the Montreal Cognitive Assessment. RESULTS In this sample, 52.3% of patients were assessed as robust, 41.9% as prefrail, and 5.8% as frail; 38.8% had cognitive dysfunction. Multinomial regression showed that frailty was associated with older age, female sex, higher physiologic class, and comorbidities. Counterintuitively, patients with mild heart defects were more likely than those with complex lesions to be prefrail. Patients from middle-income countries displayed more prefrailty than those from higher-income countries. Logistic regression demonstrated that cognitive dysfunction was related to older age, comorbidities, and lower country-level income. CONCLUSIONS Approximately one-half of included patients were (pre-)frail, and more than one-third experienced cognitive impairment. Frailty and cognitive dysfunction were identified in patients with mild CHD, indicating that these concerns extend beyond severe CHD. Assessing frailty and cognition routinely could offer valuable insights into this aging population.
Daelman et al. (Fri,) conducted a cross-sectional in Congenital heart disease (n=814). Congenital heart disease was evaluated on Frailty phenotype (Fried method) and cognitive function (Montreal Cognitive Assessment). Among 814 adults aged ≥40 years with congenital heart disease, 41.9% were prefrail, 5.8% were frail, and 38.8% had cognitive dysfunction, with frailty associated with older age and comorbidities.