Characteristics of Kihon Checklist associated withimprovement from prefrailty to robustness incommunity-dwelling middle-aged and older adults

Abstract

Aim: The study aimed to examine the characteristics of the Kihon Checklist (KCL) domains with improvement from prefrailty to robustness.Methods: The study included middle- and older-aged community-dwelling adults who participated in semiannual physical fitness test sessions. The presence or absence of prefrailty was assessed by the revised Japanese cardiovascular health study criteria at baseline and six months later. Six months after baseline, the participants were divided into two groups: a group that improved from prefrailty to robustness and a nonimproved group. Additionally, the KCL was used to assess life-related functions. Binomial logistic regression analysis was performed with the improved and non-improved groups as dependent variables and the scores in each domain of the KCL as independent variables. Additionally, we compared the percentages of respondents who responded to the KCL subitems that showed significant associations and examined their characteristics.Results: In total, 60 middle- and older-aged community-dwelling adults were included in the analysis, with an average age of 72 ± 8 years. Binomial logistic regression analysis revealed that the KCL sub-item of social isolation (odds ratio [OR]: 0.04, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.00–0.74, p = 0.031) was associated with improvement from prefrailty to robustness. The improvement group was significantly more likely to go out at least once a week, even among those in social isolation compared with the no improvement group.Conclusions: The results of this study suggest that encouraging middle-aged and older community-dwelling adults with prefrailty to engage in more social activity may improve their condition.