title: Frailty syndrome and the risk of vascular dementia: the Italian Longitudinal Study on Aging.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Frailty is a clinical syndrome generally associated with a greater risk for adverse outcomes such as falls, disability, institutionalization, and death. Cognition and dementia have already been considered as components of frailty, but the role of frailty as a possible determinant of dementia, Alzheimer's disease (AD), and vascular dementia (VaD) has been poorly investigated. We estimated the predictive role of frailty syndrome on incident dementia and its subtypes in a nondemented, Italian, older population.
  
  
  METHODS
  We evaluated 2581 individuals recruited from the Italian Longitudinal Study on Aging sample population consisting of 5632 subjects aged 65 to 84 years and with a 3.9-year median follow-up. A phenotype of frailty according to a modified measurement of Cardiovascular Health Study criteria was operationalized. Dementia, AD, and VaD were classified using current published criteria.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Over a 3.5-year follow-up, 65 of 2581 (2.5%) older subjects, 16 among 252 frail individuals (6.3%), of which 9 were affected by VaD (3.6%), developed overall dementia. In a proportional hazards model, frailty syndrome was associated with a significantly increased risk of overall dementia (adjusted hazard ratio: 1.85; 95% confidence interval: 1.01-3.40) and, in particular, VaD (adjusted hazard ratio: 2.68; 95% confidence interval: 1.16-7.17). The risk of AD or other types of dementia did not significantly change in frail individuals in comparison with subjects without frailty syndrome.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In our large population-based sample, frailty syndrome was a short-term predictor of overall dementia and VaD.
authors.affiliation: Department of Geriatrics, Center for Aging Brain, Memory Unit, University of Bari, Bari, Italy. v.solfrizzi@geriatria.uniba.it
authors.forename: Vincenzo
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Solfrizzi
authors.forename: Emanuele
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Scafato
authors.forename: Vincenza
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Frisardi
authors.forename: Davide
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Seripa
authors.forename: Giancarlo
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Logroscino
authors.forename: Stefania
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Maggi
authors.forename: Bruno P
authors.initials: BP
authors.lastname: Imbimbo
authors.forename: Lucia
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Galluzzo
authors.forename: Marzia
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Baldereschi
authors.forename: Claudia
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Gandin
authors.forename: Antonio
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Di Carlo
authors.forename: Domenico
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Inzitari
authors.forename: Gaetano
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Crepaldi
authors.forename: Alberto
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Pilotto
authors.forename: Francesco
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Panza
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000375:Aging; D015140:Dementia, Vascular / Q000150:complications / Q000453:epidemiology*; D005260:Female; D016330:Frail Elderly; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D007558:Italy; D008297:Male; D013577:Syndrome