Social isolation is considered as a frailty marker, and social circumstances of older
adults may affect health conditions such as development of dementia or
disability.58,59 Self-reported social deficits were identified in the Canadian Study
of Health and Aging (CSHA) and the National Population Health Survey (NPHS).
A social vulnerability index was constructed based on social support, living situation,
socially oriented activities, leisure activities, and socioeconomics, among
others. After 5 years of follow-up in the CSHA and 8 years in the NPHS, the
odds of mortality increased for each additional social deficit in the index, and
a meaningful gradient across quartiles of social vulnerability was found even after
the equations were controlled for age, gender, and a Frailty Index.60 The ELSA
was assessed for a Frailty Index, neighborhood deprivation (based on the Index
of Multiple Deprivation 2004), and individual socioeconomics. The presence of
frailty increased with decreasing individual and neighborhood socioeconomic
factors, so that the poorest older adults living in the most deprived neighborhoods
also presented a higher score in the Frailty Index based on CGA deficits