Objective To systematically review the prevalence and risk factors for frailty in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Methods A systematic review and meta-analysis were conducted, and a search of the PubMed, Embase and Web of Science databases was carried out to collect Chinese and English studies on frailty and COPD published up to September 5, 2022. Results A total of 38 articles were included for the quantitative analysis after the collected literature was either included or omitted based on pertinent criteria. The results indicated that the estimated overall pooled prevalence of frailty was 36% (95% confidence interval [CI] = 31–41%), and the estimated pre-frailty was 43% (95% CI = 37–49%). A higher age (odds ratio [OR] = 1.04; 95% CI = 1.01–1.06) and higher COPD assessment test (CAT) score (OR = 1.19; 95% CI = 1.12–1.27) were associated with a significantly increased likelihood of frailty in patients with COPD. However, a higher educational attainment (OR = 0.55; 95% CI = 0.43–0.69) and higher income (OR = 0.63; 95% CI = 0.45–0.88) were associated with a significantly reduced risk of frailty in patients with COPD. A total of 17 other risk factors for frailty were identified via qualitative synthesis. Conclusion The incidence of frailty in patients with COPD is high, and there are many influencing factors.

Frailty is a geriatric syndrome that predicts the onset of disability, morbidity and mortality in elderly people; it is a state of pre-disability and is reversible. This review aimed to assess the impact of dietary supplementation interventions in frail older adults. A systematic search of PubMed, Web of Science, Embase, and the Cochrane Library databases was performed to collect randomized controlled trials of dietary supplements for the treatment of frailty in the elderly published before March 2022. The frailty score, muscle mass, muscle strength and physical performance of the frail elderly were extracted for analysis. Metaanalysis was performed using Review Manager Version 5.4 and Stata version 15.0. Totally, 18 studies met the inclusion criteria, with 1204 participants (603 experiment group vs. 601 control group). Compared to control group, multi-nutrient nutrition intervention can significantly improve the frailty score of the elderly (MD = -0.19, 95% CI: -0.38 to -0.01, P = 0.04, I2 = 0). Protein supplementation intervention significantly improved body weight (MD = 4.86, 95% CI: 1.21 to 8.52, P = 0.009), muscle mass [lean mass (MD = 2.73, 95% CI:1.26 to 4.20, P = 0.0003)], muscle strength (MD = 1.90, 95% CI: 0.68 to 3.12, P = 0.002), and physical performance [chair stand test (MD = -2.15, 95% CI: -3.21 to -1.10, P < 0.0001)] in frail older adults compared to control. This meta-analysis and systematic review suggests that dietary supplements interventions positively influence in older people with frailty.