The independent and combined effects of physical activity and depressive symptoms on frailty in community‐dwelling older adults: A cross‐sectional study

AIMS: To investigate the independent and combined effects of physical activity (PA) and depressive symptoms on the risk of frailty in community-dwelling older adults. BACKGROUND: Older adults face a high risk of frailty which is commonly used to predict adverse health outcomes in older patients. Engaging in PA and without depressive symptoms are crucial factors to prevent frailty. It is essential to investigate the independent and combined effects of these two variables on the risk of frailty. METHODS: We included 3392 community-dwelling older adults. The FRAIL Scale was used to assess older adults' frail status (robust, prefrail and frail). Multiple logistic regression was utilized to examine the independent and combined effects of PA and depressive symptoms on the risk of prefrailty and frailty. The combined effects were visualized by marginal plots. RESULTS: The prevalence of prefrailty and frailty in older adults were 42.16% and 10.58%. Compared with the group of "Light physical activity and With depressive symptoms", "Vigorous physical activity and Without depressive symptoms" had the lowest risk of prefrailty and frailty. CONCLUSIONS: Older adults who do not engage in PA or have depressive symptoms increased the risk of frailty, but older adults with depressive symptoms could lower the risk of frailty through PA. RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE: It is effective to reduce the risk of frailty by directing older adults to do moderate physical activity, although they have depressive symptoms. The focus should also be on older adults with depressive symptoms, who have at least more than twice and fourfold risk of prefrailty and frailty compared to those without. IMPACT: This study offers insights for future interventions aimed at preventing frailty in older adults. REPORTING METHOD: This study adhered to the STROBE checklist. PATIENT OR PUBLIC CONTRIBUTIONS: Older adults participated in this study and completed questionnaires.