SynthesisPloS one2022
Effect of physical activity on the risk of frailty: A systematic review and meta-analysis.
Synthesis in PloS one, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 69 papers, 6 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
69 citing papers in PubMed, 6 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 101 citations in OpenAlex.
- Effectiveness of interventions using activity trackers and smartphone applications for increasing physical activity in older adults with health conditions: a systematic review with meta-analysis.The Journal of frailty & aging · 2026Pooled it
- Physical inactivity in chronic airways disease: an important candidate in the treatable traits paradigm.European respiratory review : an official journal of the European Respiratory Society · 2026Pooled it
- Pooled it
- Interventions to prevent the onset of frailty in adults aged 60 and older (PRAE-Frail): a systematic review and network meta-analysis.European geriatric medicine · 2024Pooled it
- Factors associated with frailty in older people: an umbrella review.BMC geriatrics · 2024Pooled it
- Wearable Devices to Improve Physical Activity and Reduce Sedentary Behaviour: An Umbrella Review.Sports medicine - open · 2024Pooled it
- Pain neuroscience education with physical activity improves physical and psychological outcomes in older women with chronic low back pain.Scientific reports · 2025Trial
- What do older women want from a physical activity program? Stakeholder consultation to optimise design and recruitment for the Active Women over 50 trial.BMC public health · 2024Trial
- Article
- Factors associated with sustained robustness in older adults: an 8-year multinational longitudinal study using SHARE data.BMC geriatrics · 2026Observational
- Long-Term Physical Activity Patterns and Risk of Future Frailty: A Systematic Review and Age-Stratified Meta-Analysis.Geriatrics (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Review
- Exploring Associations Between Social Risk Factors and Physical Frailty in Heart Failure: A Cross-Sectional Analysis.Journal of cardiac failure - intersections · 2026Article
- Cross-Sectional Associations of Integrated Lifestyle-Related Factors With Intrinsic Capacity in Community-Dwelling Older Adults: The Kashiwa Cohort Study.Geriatrics & gerontology international · 2026Article
- The joint association of sleep duration and physical activity with frailty among older adults: the first evidence from CHARLS.BMC geriatrics · 2026Article
- Association of physical activity and life space with cognitive frailty in patients on hemodialysis: the REPnet-HD study.International urology and nephrology · 2026Article
- The Application of Metabolomics in Frailty: Trends, Challenges, and Future Directions.Metabolites · 2026Review
- Effectiveness of mobile health interventions on physical activity management in frail older adults: a systematic review and meta-analysis.European review of aging and physical activity : official journal of the European Group for Research into Elderly and Physical Activity · 2026Review
- Joint Associations of Accelerometer-Derived Intensity Gradient and Diet Quality with Frailty Among Rural Chinese Older Adults.Nutrients · 2026Article
- Performance-Based and Self-Reported Frailty in Older Adults with or Without Fibromyalgia.European journal of investigation in health, psychology and education · 2026Article
- Incidental Lifestyle Physical Activity and Its Relationships With Overall Frailty and Frailty Domains in Community-Dwelling Older Japanese.Geriatrics & gerontology international · 2026Article
9 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
11 authors at 8 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectiveThe relationship between physical activity (PA) and the risk of frailty has not reached a conclusive result. This systematic review with meta-analysis aimed to evaluate the effect of PA on the onset of frailty in the community-dwelling middle and older age adults by pooling data from cohort studies.
methodsA systematic literature search was performed via PubMed, Embase, and Web of Science up to June 01, 2021. Pooled adjusted effect estimates (ES) with 95% confidence interval (CI) were calculated by using the random-effect model and by comparing the highest with lowest levels of PA. Heterogeneity was tested using the I2 statistic and Q-test. The quality of evidence was evaluated by using the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation (GRADE) approach.
resultsA total of ten cohort studies with 14 records were selected, and the GRADE approach classified the quality of evidence as low. In comparison with the lowest level of PA, the highest level of PA was associated with 41% decreased odds of frailty (ES: 0.59, 95% CI: 0.51-0.67; I2 = 70.0%, P-heterogeneity < 0.001) after pooling results from included studies. In stratified analysis by frailty assessment approach, the highest level of PA was significantly associated with 37% (ES 0.63, 95% CI: 0.52-0.77, 49% (ES: 0.51, 95% CI: 0.41-0.63), and 30% (ES: 0.70, 95% CI: 0.65-0.75) reduced odds of frailty when pooling studies using criteria of physical frailty, multidimensional model, and accumulation of disability, respectively. Stratified analyses further by PA indicators and PA assessment tools yielded similar protective effects in any subgroups.
conclusionsThis study with moderate-certainty evidence shows that a higher level of PA was associated with lower odds of frailty, and the benefits of PA for frailty prevention were independent of frailty assessment tools, PA indicators, and PA assessment methods. Findings from this study may help implement active exercise strategies to prevent frailty.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.