Older adults with baseline heart disease had a higher long-term risk of developing frailty over 20 years in a community-based cohort study published in Heart, Lung, and Circulation. The association remained stronger in men after adjustment for age, diabetes, hypertension, smoking, and body mass index.
The analysis included 3,998 non-frail adults aged 65 years or older, including 2,000 men and 1,998 women. Heart disease included chronic heart failure, myocardial infarction, and angina pectoris identified through self-report and medication verification. Frailty was assessed using the FRAIL scale at baseline and during follow-up visits conducted over 20 years.

Findings

• At baseline, heart disease prevalence was 18.3% in men and 16.5% in women.
• Over 62,012 person-years of follow-up, baseline heart disease remained associated with incident frailty after adjustment for confounding factors.
• In men, baseline heart disease was associated with a 77% higher risk of frailty (adjusted HR 1.77; 95% CI 1.26–2.48; p=0.001).
• In women, baseline heart disease was associated with a 34% higher risk of frailty (adjusted HR 1.34; 95% CI 1.00–1.80; p=0.048).

The findings suggest that heart disease is associated with higher long-term frailty risk in older adults, particularly among men.