OBJECTIVE: To assess the presence of frailty and its relationship to sociodemographic and clinical characteristics in institutionalized elderly. METHODS: Cross-sectional study with 54 elderly residents in long-stay institutions in the Northeast of Brazil. The data collection instruments were the Edmonton Frail Scale, socioeconomic assessmentand health profiles. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and Chi-square test, with significance level of 0.05. RESULTS: The mean age was 72.4 (± 8.5) years, 61.1% were male and 74.1% had some level of frailty. There were positive correlations between frailty, gender, age, comorbidities, body mass index and the need and amount of medicines. CONCLUSION: Frailty in institutionalized elderly is influenced by sociodemographic and clinical characteristics.
Geriatric nursing; Skilled nursing facilities; Nursing care; Frail elderly; Homes for the aged