Embracing complexity: new horizons in frailty research

Frailty is a complex, ageing-related clinical syndrome with decreased reserves to stressors, affecting approximately 10% of community-dwelling older adults worldwide.1 Frail individuals have compromised ability to maintain system homeostasis due to dysregulations across multiple physiological systems, leading to increased vulnerability to adverse outcomes.2 Frailty is conceptualised as a distinct clinical entity from disability; however, research in this area has been slow for multiple reasons, such as incomplete understanding of the natural history and aetiology of frailty.