Frailty and Heart Disease

The continuous increase of life expectancy is responsible for the increasing number of patients suffering from heart diseases being older than 65 years of age. Moreover, the reduction of mortality due to heart diseases implies that patients survive for longer periods and often reach very advanced age. Frailty, a biological syndrome that reflects a state of decreased physiological reserve and higher vulnerability to stressors, is common in these patients and strongly increases the risk of negative health outcomes. Therefore, it should be systematically assessed, using validated instruments. However, the impact of frailty on the management of heart diseases is still incompletely understood. Until further research clarifies this issue, it is recommended to identify frailty, in order to provide a personalized approach to the treatment of cardiac diseases as well as to implement the interventions that can counteract frailty, including referral for comprehensive geriatric assessment, as needed.