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Overlap of Frailty and Depression and Its Association With Cardiovascular Disease: A Population-Based Study

Diego Armando Pérez Covo1,2, Cristian Orlando Porras Bueno1,2, Diego Alejandro Ortega Gomez1,2

  • 1Departamento de Medicina Interna, Pontificia Universidad Javeriana, Bogotá, Colombia.

Clinical Medicine Insights. Cardiology
|August 5, 2026
PubMed

Insights

The co-occurrence of depression and frailty in older adults significantly increases cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk. This combined geriatric syndrome phenotype presents a heightened CVD burden, even after accounting for traditional risk factors.

Area of Science:

  • Geriatric Medicine
  • Cardiovascular Health
  • Mental Health

Background:

  • Depression and frailty are common conditions in older adults.
  • Their combined presence may indicate a higher risk for cardiovascular disease (CVD).
  • The association between co-occurring depression, frailty, and CVD in Latin America remains understudied.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the relationship between the overlap of depression and frailty and the prevalence of CVD in an older adult population.
  • To characterize this association within the Latin American context.

Main Methods:

  • Cross-sectional analysis of the 2015 SABE Colombia study data.
  • Inclusion of adults aged 60 years and older with data on depression, frailty, and CVD (myocardial infarction or stroke).
  • Prevalence ratios (PRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated using log-binomial regression models.

Main Results:

  • 18,973 participants were analyzed, with prevalences of 57.3% for depression, 3.5% for frailty, and 15.4% for CVD.
  • The overlap of depression and frailty showed the strongest association with CVD (PR 4.86; 95% CI 3.37-7.01) in multivariate analyses.
  • This association remained significant after adjusting for traditional cardiovascular risk factors (PR 2.05; 95% CI 1.05-3.97).

Conclusions:

  • The co-occurrence of depression and frailty is independently associated with a higher prevalence of CVD in older adults.
  • This combined geriatric syndrome phenotype signifies an increased cardiovascular burden.
  • Clinical attention to both depression and frailty is crucial for managing CVD risk in the elderly.
Abstract

Keywords:
cardiovascular diseasescross-sectional studiesdepressionfrailtygeriatrics

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