Screening for Frailty at Home

Overview

"Many tools to evaluate frailty have been developed. However, at the time our study was designed, none of these instruments had been validated in terms of psychometric properties. The aim of this study was to validate the modified version of the Short Emergency Geriatric Assessment (SEGAm) frailty instrument in elderly people living at home. It was an observational, longitudinal, prospective, multicentre study, set up in four departments (Ardennes, Marne, Meurthe-et-Moselle, Meuse) in two French regions (Champagne-Ardenne and Lorraine). Subjects was aged 65 years or more, living at home, and was able to read and understand French, with a degree of autonomy corresponding to groups 5, or 6 in the AGGIR autonomy evaluation scale. Assessment included demographic characteristics, comprehensive geriatric assessment, and the SEGAm instrument. Psychometric validation was used to study feasibility and acceptability, internal structure validity, reliability, and discriminant validity of the SEGAm instrument. "

Full Title of Study: “Screening for Frailty in Elderly Subjects Living at Home : Validation of the Modified Short Emergency Geriatric Assessment (SEGAm) Instrument”

Study Type

  • Study Type: Observational
  • Study Design
    • Time Perspective: Other
  • Study Primary Completion Date: July 2012

Detailed Description

Many tools to evaluate frailty have been developed. However, most are designed for use in the hospital setting, with the resultant drawback that they are not suitable for routine use in the community setting. A few tools have been developed for use in community-dwelling subjects, such as the Cardiovascular Health Study (CHS) developed by Fried from a cohort of subjects aged 65 and older; the Study of Osteoporotic Fractures (SOF); or the SHARE frailty instrument, developed in a cohort of the same name comprising subjects aged 50 years and older living at home. However, at the time our study was designed, none of these instruments had been validated in terms of psychometric properties. The aim of this study was to validate the modified version of the Short Emergency Geriatric Assessment (SEGAm) frailty instrument in elderly people living at home. It was an observational, longitudinal, prospective, multicentre study, set up in four departments (Ardennes, Marne, Meurthe-et-Moselle, Meuse) in two French regions (Champagne-Ardenne and Lorraine). Subjects was aged 65 years or more, living at home, and was able to read and understand French, with a degree of autonomy corresponding to groups 5, or 6 in the AGGIR autonomy evaluation scale. Assessment included demographic characteristics, comprehensive geriatric assessment, and the SEGAm instrument. Psychometric validation was used to study feasibility and acceptability, internal structure validity, reliability, and discriminant validity of the SEGAm instrument.

Interventions

  • Other: SEGAm

Arms, Groups and Cohorts

  • SEGAm
    • Elderly community-dwelling people

Clinical Trial Outcome Measures

Primary Measures

  • The psychometric properties of SEGAm measured by questionnaire
    • Time Frame: 12 months after inclusion
    • The SEGAm to be validated comprises Sheet A, which evaluates frailty per se on a 13-item scale, with each item graded either 0 (most favourable state), 1, or 2 (least favourable state), thus making it possible to classify subjects into three groups: not very frail (score ≤8), frail (8<score ≤11), and very frail (score> 11). The SEGAm was administered by social workers, ergotherapists, nurses and non-medical personnel trained in administration of the instrument.

Participating in This Clinical Trial

Inclusion Criteria

  • Age: 65 years or more – Living at home – Able to read and understand French – With a degree of autonomy corresponding to groups 5, or 6 in the AGGIR autonomy evaluation scale Exclusion Criteria:

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Gender Eligibility: All

Minimum Age: 65 Years

Maximum Age: N/A

Are Healthy Volunteers Accepted: Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Investigator Details

  • Lead Sponsor
    • CHU de Reims
  • Provider of Information About this Clinical Study
    • Sponsor

References

Oubaya N, Mahmoudi R, Jolly D, Zulfiqar AA, Quignard E, Cunin C, Nazeyrollas P, Novella JL, Drame M. Screening for frailty in elderly subjects living at home: validation of the Modified Short Emergency Geriatric Assessment (SEGAm) instrument. J Nutr Health Aging. 2014;18(8):757-64. doi: 10.1007/s12603-014-0541-1.

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