Frailty significantly increases the risk of fractures among middle-aged and older people

Commentary on: Chen KW, Chang SF, Lin PL. Frailty as a predictor of future fracture in older adults: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Worldviews Evid Based Nurs 2017;14:282–93. Older people are a heterogeneous population that often has multiple medical problems, disabilities and comorbidities with different patterns and severity. It is therefore challenging to provide optimal care for older patients and meet their healthcare needs. The term ‘frailty’ has gained increasing attention and interest from healthcare providers and researchers. It has emerged as a significant concept to assess overall health status of older people. Because frailty involves age-related deficit accumulation and depleted physiological reserve across multiple body systems, frail individuals are at higher risk of morbidity and mortality as well as other various negative health outcomes than fit …