Practicality and Reliability of Self Vs Administered Rapid Geriatric Assessment Mobile App

Area of Science:

• Geriatric Medicine
• Digital Health
• Public Health

Background:

• Geriatric syndromes like frailty, sarcopenia, and anorexia of aging significantly impact older adults' health.
• Early identification and targeted interventions are crucial for managing these conditions and improving quality of life.
• Existing assessment methods can be time-consuming or require trained personnel.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and cross-validate a self-administered Rapid Geriatric Assessment (SA-RGA) app.
• To compare the SA-RGA app's performance against a standard administered Rapid Geriatric Assessment (A-RGA).
• To identify older adults who may benefit from targeted interventions for geriatric syndromes.

Main Methods:

• A prospective observational study involving 123 participants aged 60 and above.
• Participants completed both the SA-RGA app and the A-RGA as a reference standard.
• The SA-RGA app screened for frailty (FRAIL), sarcopenia (SARC-F), anorexia of aging (SNAQ), and cognition, with diagnostic performance metrics calculated.

Main Results:

• The SA-RGA app demonstrated good performance in assessing weight loss, falls, chronic illness count, and fatigue.
• Participants using SA-RGA reported lower prevalence in some FRAIL scale components but higher prevalence in SARC-F strength and rising components compared to A-RGA.
• Key indicators like fatigue, multiple illnesses, weight loss, and falls showed high sensitivity, specificity, and predictive values.

Conclusions:

• The SA-RGA app is a promising tool for the early identification of older adults at risk for geriatric syndromes.
• Improvements in SA-RGA wording are suggested to enhance self-functional assessment accuracy.
• The app has the potential for integration into eHEALTH platforms globally to reduce health inequalities and build community resilience.