Correlation study of geriatric frailty syndrome with ultrasound elastography parameters

This study examines the changes in renal and carotid artery elasticity parameters in patients with geriatric frailty syndrome, analyzing the clinical value of ultrasound elastography (UE) in frailty assessment. A total of 120 elderly frail patients (frailty group) and 60 healthy elderly individuals (control group) were selected from January 2023 to December 2024. The Fried frailty phenotype criteria were used for frailty staging, and shear wave elastography (SWE) was applied to measure the elastic modulus values of renal cortex and carotid arteries. Traditional biochemical indicators (blood creatinine, eGFR) and atherosclerosis parameters (pulse wave velocity, PWV) were also recorded simultaneously. Pearson correlation analysis and ROC curve evaluation were used to assess the relationship between elasticity parameters and frailty severity. The results showed that the renal cortex elasticity value (28.5±5.2 kPa) and carotid artery elasticity value (35.6±6.8 kPa) in the frailty group were significantly higher than those in the control group (12.8±2.1 kPa, 18.3±3.4 kPa). Elasticity values were positively correlated with the frailty index (FI) (p<0.01) and negatively correlated with eGFR (p<0.01). ROC curve analysis revealed that the combined use of renal cortex elasticity value and carotid artery elasticity value had an AUC of 0.93 for diagnosing moderate to severe frailty (sensitivity 88%, specificity 85%). The study found that ultrasound elastography parameters are significantly associated with the severity of geriatric frailty syndrome and can serve as a non-invasive, objective assessment tool to assist in early identification and intervention of frailty status.