Characteristics of community-dwelling older adults with focus on the components of social frailty: A pilot cross-sectional study

Abstract

Objectives: This pilot cross-sectional study aimed to investigate the characteristics of community-dwelling older adults, focusing on the components of social frailty.

Methods: The participants comprised 74 older adults (age 75.8±6.7 years, 60 women, 81.1%) who were recruited from local senior centers and through local newspaper advertisements in Ibaraki City. Social frailty was assessed using the five components of Makizako et al.: living alone, going out less frequently, rarely visiting friends, feeling unhelpful to friends or family, and not talking with someone every day. Physical frailty and physical functions, such as grip strength and walking speed, were assessed. The participants were divided into 2 groups: the social frail group and the non-socially frailty group. Next, we compared the two groups based on their answers on each component of social frailty.

Results: The prevalence of social frailty was 33.8%. The participants with social frailty were significantly older, had a higher prevalence of physical frailty, and had lower grip strength than those with non-social frailty. Participants living alone and those who did not feel helpful toward friends or family were also older and had a lower range of physical functions than those who did not live alone.

Conclusions: As the components of social frailty have different characteristics, it may be necessary to focus on the components to support community-dwelling older adults with social frailty.