title: Frailty prevalence and neighborhood residence in older Mexican Americans: the San Antonio longitudinal study of aging.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To examine the association between neighborhood residence and frailty prevalence in older Mexican Americans (MAs).
  
  
  METHODS
  Cross-sectional, observational study.
  
  
  METHODS
  Socioeconomically and ethnically diverse neighborhoods in San Antonio, Texas.
  
  
  METHODS
  Community-dwelling older MA adults (aged ≥ 65) who completed the baseline examination of the San Antonio Longitudinal Study of Aging (SALSA) (1992-1996) (N = 394).
  
  
  METHODS
  Subjects were randomly sampled from three types of neighborhoods that varied in ethnic composition and economic environment: barrio (low-income, exclusively MA), transitional (middle-income, equal proportion MAs and European Americans (EAs)) and suburban (upper-income, predominantly EA). Frailty was classified using the Fried criteria. Frailty odds were estimated according to neighborhood using logistic regression, with the suburban neighborhood as the reference category. Covariates included age, sex, diseases, depressive symptoms, and cognitive function.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Frailty prevalence was 15.6% in the barrio, 9.4% in the transitional neighborhood, and 3.5% in the suburbs (P = .01). After adjusting for sociodemographic characteristics and disease covariates, odds of frailty were 4.15 times as high for MAs residing in the barrio as for those residing in the suburbs (P = .03). After adjustment for depression and cognition, this association was no longer significant. Diabetes mellitus and depression accounted for the higher odds of frailty in the barrio. Although odds of frailty in the transitional neighborhood were 1.95 times as high as those in the suburbs, the difference was not statistically significant.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The ethnic composition and economic environment of the neighborhoods in which MA older adults reside are strongly associated with their odds of being frail.
authors.affiliation: Division ofGeriatrics, Gerontology and Palliative Medicine, Department of Medicine, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, San Antonio, Texas; Division of Clinical Epidemiology, Department of Medicine, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, San Antonio, Texas; Barshop Institute for Longevity and Aging Studies, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, San Antonio, Texas; Geriatrics Research, Education and Clinical Center, South Texas Veterans Healthcare System, San Antonio, Texas.
authors.forename: Sara E
authors.initials: SE
authors.lastname: Espinoza
authors.forename: Helen P
authors.initials: HP
authors.lastname: Hazuda
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D016330:Frail Elderly; D006801:Humans; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D017058:Mexican Americans; D015995:Prevalence; D012111:Residence Characteristics; D012923:Social Class; D013781:Texas / Q000453:epidemiology; D014505:Urban Population
keywords: Mexican Americans; frailty; neighborhood