Special ArticleFrailty Consensus: A Call to Action
Section snippets
Methods
Six major international (International Association of Gerontology and Geriatrics; Society on Sarcopenia, Cachexia, and Wasting Diseases; and the International Academy of Nutrition and Aging), European (European Union Geriatric Medicine Society), and US societies (American Medical Directors Association and American Federation for Aging Research) provided delegates to attend this consensus meeting. In addition, 7 other experts in the area of frailty were invited by the conveners (Bruno Vellas and
Physical Frailty Is an Important Medical Syndrome
The group defined frailty as
“A medical syndrome with multiple causes and contributors that is characterized by diminished strength, endurance, and reduced physiologic function that increases an individual's vulnerability for developing increased dependency and/or death.”
In addition to the definition, the group made 4 key points:
- 1.
Although recognizing that frail individuals could be disabled and that not all disabled persons are frail, the group agreed that the emphasis on case finding should
Acknowledgments
Supported by unrestricted educational grants from Sanofi and Nutricia Advanced Medical Nutrition (group Danone).
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The authors declare no conflicts of interest.