An Artificial Neural Network Model for Assessing Frailty-Associated Factors in the Thai Population

Frailty, one of the major public health problems in the elderly, can result from multiple etiologic factors including biological and physical changes in the body which contribute to the reduction in the function of multiple bodily systems. A diagnosis of frailty can be reached using a variety of frailty assessment tools. In this study, general characteristics and health data were assessed using modified versions of Fried’s Frailty Phenotype (mFFP) and the Frail Non-Disabled (FiND) questionnaire (mFiND) to construct a Self-Organizing Map (SOM). Trained data, composed of the component planes of each variable, were visualized using 2-dimentional hexagonal grid maps. The relationship between the variables and the final SOM was then investigated. The SOM model using the modified FiND questionnaire showed a correct classification rate (%CC) of about 66% rather than the model responded to mFFP models. The SOM Discrimination Index (SOMDI) identified cataracts/glaucoma, age, sex, stroke, polypharmacy, gout, and sufficiency of income, in that order, as the top frailty-associated factors. The SOM model, based on the mFiND questionnaire frailty assessment, is an appropriate tool for assessment of frailty in the Thai elderly. Cataracts/glaucoma, stroke, polypharmacy, and gout are all modifiable early prediction factors of frailty in the Thai elderly.