Association of frailty with quality of life in older hypertensive adults: a cross-sectional study

Hypertension is one of the most common chronic cardiovascular diseases in older adults. Frailty and hypertension often coexist in older people, but few studies have explored frailty in older hypertensive adults. We aimed to explore the association of frailty with quality of life in older hypertensive adults.

We collected the data of 291 patients with hypertension aged ≥ 60 years. Blood pressure was measured with a standard aneroid sphygmomanometer and an ambulatory blood pressure monitor. The characteristics of the Fried phenotype were used to assess physical frailty. The Medical Outcomes Study’s 36-Item Short Form Health Survey (SF-36) was used to assess the quality of life.

Forty-eight (16.5%) patients were frail. Compared with pre-frail or robust older hypertensive patients, those who were frail were older, had higher incidences of living alone, a longer duration of hypertension, lower grip strength, and slower walking speed. Moreover, frail patients had a lower diastolic blood pressure (DBP) and mean arterial pressure (MAP), more chronic diseases, a lower proportion of beta-blocker usage, and worse quality of life. Frailty was positively correlated with pulse pressure and negatively correlated with DBP and MAP, but these associations disappeared after adjustment by age. The SF-36 score was negatively correlated with frailty and positively correlated with grip strength and walking speed. After adjusting for age, the SF-36 total score remained negatively correlated with frailty and positively correlated with walking speed. Frailty states remained significantly associated with the SF-36 score.

Frailty was associated with a worse quality of life in older adults with hypertension. Frailty prevention and intervention may help improve the quality of life of older adults with hypertension.