Perioperative medicine & outcomes
Impact of clinical frailty on mortality after elective surgery in patients aged ≥ 90 years admitted to critical care: a binational intensive care registry analysis
Main finding · 1-year all-cause mortalityResult — go to the resultMatched HR 1.66 95% CI 1.47–1.87Authors' conclusion
Among patients aged ≥ 90 years undergoing elective surgery with postoperative intensive care admission, frailty is strongly associated with prolonged recovery and worse short and long-term outcomes. Incorporation of frailty assessment into peri-operative pathways may improve risk stratification, shared decision-making and personalised care for patients aged ≥ 90 years.
Study context
- Population
- Patients aged ≥ 90 years admitted to ICU following elective surgery, encompassing planned and unplanned ICU admissionsmatched cohort · without frailty (Clinical Frailty Scale 1-4) 2,699 · living with frailty (Clinical Frailty Scale 5-8) 2,699
- Participants
- 5,398 patients
- Exposure
- Frail vs non-frail patients
- Frailn = 2,699
- Non-frailn = 2,699
- Outcome
- 1-year all-cause mortality
- Follow-up
- 1 year
Methodological detailspropensity score matching, binational intensive care registry (Australian and New Zealand Intensive Care Society Adult Patient Database)
- Propensity score matching
- Binational intensive care registry (Australian and New Zealand Intensive Care Society Adult Patient Database)
Main finding
As reported in the abstract
Matched HR
1.66
95% CI 1.47–1.87
P < 0.001
Frail vs Non-frail
matched HR 1.66 (95% CI 1.47–1.87); P < 0.001
Observational data: associations, not effects.
Secondary outcomes
| Outcome | Estimate | P value | |
|---|---|---|---|
| In-hospital mortalityHigher in-hospital mortality with frailty | matched HR 1.66 (95% CI 1.22–2.27) | P = 0.001 | |
| Return to pre-admission residence at hospital dischargeHigher odds without frailty | matched OR for returning to pre-admission residence 1.45 (95% CI 1.29–1.62) | P < 0.001 | |
| 0.512Ratio (log scale) |
ICU mortality
- Mortality in ICU was low and not significantly different between patients who were frail and non-frail
Duration of hospital stay
- Patients who were frail experienced longer hospital stays
Original publication
Impact of clinical frailty on mortality after elective surgery in patients aged ≥ 90 years admitted to critical care: a binational intensive care registry analysis. Anaesthesia. Published 13 October 2026. doi:10.
Composed by AI from the published abstract and checked against it. How Briefs are made →