ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVES: To explore associations among cognition, frailty, and obesity in older adults. DESIGN: Descriptive, secondary analysis of baseline data from two related lifestyle intervention trials. SETTING: Clinical study open to civilian population through the Center for Translational Research on Inflammatory Diseases at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Houston, TX. PARTICIPANTS: One hundred eight community-dwelling adults with obesity, aged 65 or older, recruited consecutively from two lifestyle intervention trials. MEASUREMENTS: Cognition was assessed using Composite Age-Adjusted Scale Score from the National Institutes of Health Toolbox Cognition Battery: Obesity was assessed by body mass index (BMI) and also by truncal fat mas via dual energy x-ray absorptiometry. Frailty was assessed using the Physical Performance Test. RESULTS: A significant linear regression model for cognition revealed frailty as the strongest predictor, followed by sex, and then truncal fat (R2=0.340, p<0.001). CONCLUSION: Cognition among community-dwelling older adults with obese BMI may worsen with greater truncal fat mass. Frailty appears to be an important predictor of cognitive performance in this population.
