Translation and validation of the Chinese version of the Japan Frailty Scale

Purpose Frailty is a difficult-to-measure condition that is susceptible to adverse outcomes. The Japan Frailty Scale (JFS) is a tool for assessing frailty status in older adults. This study aimed to translate and culturally adapt the JFS into a Chinese version (JFS-C). Materials and methods The study included 160 older adults as participants. Internal consistency was assessed using Cronbach’s alpha, and test–retest reliability was conducted using the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC). Convergent validity was evaluated by assessing the correlation between JFS-C and the Barthel Index, the Frail scale, and the 36-item Short-Form Health Survey (SF-36). Criterion validity was assessed by comparing JFS-C scores with the Frail scale. Results JFS-C demonstrated adequate internal consistency (Cronbach’s alphas = 0.711) and excellent test–retest reliability over a 7 to 10-day interval (ICC = 0.949). Correlation analysis showed a strong positive correlation between JFS-C and the Frail scale ( r = 0.786, p < 0.001), a moderate negative correlation with the Barthel Index ( r = −0.598, p < 0.001), and moderate correlations with various subscales of SF-36 ( r = −0.574 to −0.661). However, no significant correlations were found between JFS-C and SF-36 mental health ( r = −0.363, p < 0.001) or role emotional ( r = −0.350, p < 0.001). Based on the reference standard of the Frail scale phenotype (score ≥ 2), the cutoff value for JFS-C was determined to be 3. Conclusion JFS-C demonstrates good reliability and validity in assessing frailty among the older population in China.