Serum biomarkers related to frailty predict negative outcomes in older adults with hip fracture

Purpose Hip fracture is a public health problem worldwide. Traditional prognostic models do not include blood biomarkers, such as those obtained by proteomics. This study aimed to investigate the relationships between serum inflammatory biomarkers and frailty in older adults with hip fracture as well as adverse outcomes at one and three months after discharge. Methods A total of 45 patients aged 75 or older who were admitted for hip fracture were recruited. At admission, a Comprehensive Geriatric Assessment (CGA) was conducted, which included a frailty assessment using the Clinical Frailty Scale (CFS). Blood samples were collected before surgery. Participants were followed up at one and three months after discharge. The levels of 45 cytokines were analyzed using a high-throughput proteomic approach. Binary logistic regression was used to determine independent associations with outcomes, such as functional recovery, polypharmacy, hospital readmission, and mortality. Results The results showed that IL-7 (OR 0.66 95% CI 0.46–0.94, p = 0.022) and CXCL-12 (OR 0.97 95% CI 0.95–0.99, p = 0.011) were associated with better functional recovery at three months after discharge, while CXCL-8 (OR 1.07 95% CI 1.01–1.14, p = 0.019) was associated with an increased risk of readmission. Conclusions These findings suggest that immunology biomarkers may represent useful predictors of clinical outcomes in hip fracture patients. Graphical abstract