Frailty is one of the most significant issues related to human aging. Although studies have confirmed the association of mental and cognitive disorders with frailty, the association might be influenced by age, since oldest-old adults are more likely to have adverse health outcomes. Thus, this study aimed to examine independent and combined associations of mental health and cognitive function with frailty in oldest-old adults using data from the Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey in 2018. A sum of 6,891 and 3,171 older adults aged 80 and older were included in this study when analyzing the association of depression and cognitive impairment with frailty, respectively. Frailty was measured by the Study of Osteoporotic Fractures frailty index, depression was assessed by the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale, and cognitive impairment was evaluated by the Chinese version of modified Mini-Mental State Examination. Independent sample t-test, Chi-square tests, and logistic regression analyses were used to examine the associations of depression and cognitive impairment with frailty. Older persons with depression or cognitive impairment had a higher chance of frailty. The adjusted odds ratio (OR) of frailty was 1.27 (95% CI: 1.01, 1.59, p = 0.044) in those with depression, and 1.85 (95% CI: 1.14, 3.01, p = 0.013) in those with cognitive impairment. Compared to adults who had neither depression nor cognitive impairment, those with either depression or cognitive impairment, and those with both depression and cognitive impairment had a significantly higher likelihood of frailty (adjusted OR: 1.61, 95% CI: 1.07, 2.41; and adjusted OR: 4.03, 95% CI: 2.05, 7.94). The findings suggest that depression and cognitive impairment are associated with frailty. The concurrence of depression and cognitive impairment has an additive effect on frailty in oldest-old population.

To better determine the rate of aging and offer tailored intervention or medical care, it is essential to create a comprehensive indicator that can evaluate physical fitness in middle‐aged and older people. This study aimed to create an indicator of physical fitness age (PFA) that can be used to comprehensively evaluate physical performance and to confirm its validity. There were 5,368 participants in the constructing PFA group and 1,846 participants in the validating PFA group (aged ≥40 for all). We measure five physical fitness items to develop PFA by using principal component analysis. To assess the validity of PFA, we compared chronological age (CA) and PFA in participants with and without possible sarcopenia and used receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis to assess the discriminating power of the CA and PFA in identifying possible sarcopenia. We established an indicator of PFA which was expressed as PFA = 24.857 − 0.034 × peak expiratory flow − 0.609 × handgrip strength + 9.238 × walking speed + 1.238 × 5‐time chair stand test + 0.742 × CA for men, and PFA = 22.171 − 0.051 × peak expiratory flow − 0.735 × handgrip strength + 7.603 × walking speed + 1.108 × 5‐time chair stand test + 0.753 × CA for women. The validation test demonstrated that PFA was statistically lower than CA in participants without possible sarcopenia, while the PFA was significantly greater than CA in those with possible sarcopenia. ROC analysis showed that PFA had a larger area under the curve than CA. The findings suggest that PFA is a valid predictor of physical performance in Chinese middle‐aged and older adults, which can discriminate persons of the same CA but different levels of physical performance.

The authors aimed to explore the association between anthropometric indicators and cognitive function and determine which aspects of anthropometric indicators are most closely related to cognitive function. A sum of 3269 older women were included in this study. Body mass index (BMI), waist circumference, hip circumference, calf circumference, and waist-to-hip ratio were obtained to reflect anthropometric indicators. Cognitive function was assessed using Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE). Researchers revealed statistically significant differences in total MMSE scores among the low, medium, and high groups of BMI, waist circumference, hip circumference, and calf circumference. Researchers also observed that calf circumference, hip circumference, and waist circumference are significantly associated with the total MMSE score. Our findings highlighted that older women with greater BMI, waist circumference, hip circumference, and calf circumference have a better level of cognitive function. Calf circumference is the most closely anthropometric indicator related to cognitive function in Chinese older women.