Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40931291›Full record

ArticleGeroScience2026

A simplified clinical frailty scale predicts mortality in emergency department patients with acute dyspnea.

Ahmad Zwawi, Torgny Wessman, Per Wändell, Olle Melander, Axel C Carlsson, Toralph Ruge

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in GeroScience, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from 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.

2 · The registry

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.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors.

Ahmad ZwawiDepartment of Emergency and Internal Medicine, Skåne University Hospital, Malmö, Sweden.
Torgny WessmanDepartment of Emergency and Internal Medicine, Skåne University Hospital, Malmö, Sweden.
Per WändellDepartment of Neurobiology, Care Sciences and Society, Karolinska Institutet, Huddinge, Sweden. per.wandell@ki.se.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-5169-2965
Olle MelanderDepartment of Emergency and Internal Medicine, Skåne University Hospital, Malmö, Sweden.
Axel C CarlssonDepartment of Neurobiology, Care Sciences and Society, Karolinska Institutet, Huddinge, Sweden.
Toralph RugeDepartment of Emergency and Internal Medicine, Skåne University Hospital, Malmö, Sweden.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

To evaluate a simplified version of the Clinical Frailty Scale (SCFS) among older adults presenting to the emergency department (ED) with acute dyspnea. In this retrospective single-center cohort study, we included patients from the Acute Dyspnea Study (ADYS) cohort. Severity of illness was assessed using the Medical Emergency Triage and Treatment System (METTS). SCFS was operationalized using existing data on municipal care services from the ADYS database and divided into three levels. SCFS 1: Not frail patients with no need for municipal care services, SCFS 2: Patients with municipal care services, including home care, and SCFS 3: Patients with residence in a short-term care facility or nursing home. The primary outcome was 90-day mortality and hospitalization. Multivariable Cox and logistic regression analyses were used to assess associations between SCFS and outcome variables. SCFS criteria were met in 35.2% of patients (668 patients, SCFS group 2 and 3). These individuals had a higher comorbidity burden and increased 90-day mortality (20.9%, p < 0.001). SCFS group 3 was independently associated with a higher risk of 90-day mortality (HR = 2.60, 95% CI: 1.27-5.29, p = 0.009), compared to group 1. ROC curve analysis showed that combining SCFS with METTS significantly improved predictive performance (DeLong's test: p = 0.015 and p = 0.0322 in respective models). For hospitalization, SCFS group 3 was associated with hospitalization independent of age, sex, BMI, comorbidities, and readmission, when compared to SCFS group 1 (OR = 2.57, CI:1.11-6.71, p = 0.037). This association was attenuated and nonsignificant after further adjustment for METTS. SCFS is an independent predictor of 90-day mortality in older ED patients with acute dyspnea. When combined with triage scores like METTS, its predictive value improves. These findings support the potential clinical utility of incorporating frailty assessment into ED triage to aid risk stratification and guide care decisions.

Indexed as

DyspneaEmergency Service, HospitalFrail ElderlyFrailtyGeriatric AssessmentAcute DiseaseAgedAged, 80 and overFemaleHospitalizationHospital MortalityHumansMalePredictive Value of TestsRetrospective StudiesSeverity of Illness IndexAgingDyspneaEDFrailtyMortality

Identifiers

PMID40931291
PMCPMC13356002

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY
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Registered trials

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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.