[Gait speed as an indicator of fragility in community-dwelling elders in Lima, Peru].
OBJECTIVE
To determine the gait speed cut-off point that indicates frailty in community-dwelling elderly people in Lima, Peru.


METHODS
Gait speed was measured over a distance of 8m and frailty was determined by using Fried's criteria in a sample of 246 elderly adults. A cluster analysis was applied to establish the gait speed cut-off point determining the presence of frailty.


RESULTS
The mean age was 69.9 years (SD: 7.6) and 59.8% were women. The frequency of frailty was 7.7% and the frequencies of comorbidity and dependency were 12.6% and 6.5%, respectively. The mean gait speed was 0.9 m/s (SD: 0.2) and the gait speed cut-off point indicating frailty was 0.7 m/s.


CONCLUSIONS
Gait speed less than 0.7 m/s is an indicator of frailty in community-dwelling elderly people in Lima, Peru.
Varela Pinedo
Luis
L
Instituto de Gerontología, Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia, Lima, Perú. igero@upch.edu.pe
Ortiz Saavedra
Pedro José
PJ
Chávez Jimeno
Helver
H
D000368:Aged; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D016330:Frail Elderly; D005684:Gait; D015577:Geriatric Assessment; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010568:Peru; D013997:Time Factors; D014504:Urban Health