ABSTRACT
A physician might be operating under the assumption that his or her patient is “feeble,” “fragile,” or “weak” without explicitly diagnosing frailty. However, as in many clinical situations when diagnostic clarity is not achieved, if a physician is not explicit about frailty he or she risks being inconsistent and making inappropriate recommendations to the patient and his family. Multiple indices and tools exist to define and/or measure frailty. These share in common several features that together serve to preserve the term frailty’s usefulness. Frailty has been shown to be an independent entity from other factors that are often considered part of frailty. Comorbidities and old age have been shown to be independent risks for frailty, and disability is thought to be an independent outcome. Frailty is understood as a disorder that can exist in different states. There may be some possibility in reversing the prefrail stage, but once full frailty is established it is generally considered irreversible.
