Accepted for/Published in: JMIR Research Protocols
Date Submitted: Dec 18, 2025
Open Peer Review Period: Dec 19, 2025 - Feb 13, 2026
Date Accepted: Apr 1, 2026
(closed for review but you can still tweet)
Prediction models for frailty in people living with HIV: a protocol for a systematic review and meta-analysis of prognostic models
ABSTRACT
Background:
With the advent of antiretroviral therapy, the life expectancy of people living with HIV (PLWH) has increased significantly, leading to a growing prevalence of frailty and its associated adverse outcomes. However, frailty prediction models developed for the general older population may not apply to PLWH due to their distinct immunologic, inflammatory, and comorbidity profiles. To date, a systematic evaluation of existing frailty prediction models specifically for PLWH is lacking.
Objective:
Ethical approval has been granted by the Ethics Committee of Beijing Ditan Hospital, Capital Medical University (DTEC-KY2025-088-01). Findings from this study will be disseminated through publication in peer-reviewed academic journals.
Methods:
With the advent of antiretroviral therapy, the life expectancy of people living with HIV (PLWH) has increased significantly, leading to a growing prevalence of frailty and its associated adverse outcomes. However, frailty prediction models developed for the general older population may not apply to PLWH due to their distinct immunologic, inflammatory, and comorbidity profiles. To date, a systematic evaluation of existing frailty prediction models specifically for PLWH is lacking.
Results:
Ethical approval has been granted by the Ethics Committee of Beijing Ditan Hospital, Capital Medical University (DTEC-KY2025-088-01). Findings from this study will be disseminated through publication in peer-reviewed academic journals.
Conclusions:
Research will be located by searching electronic databases, including PubMed, CINAHL, Web of Science, and Embase. Two independent reviewers will conduct the screening of titles and abstracts, evaluate full texts, and extract data. The extraction process will adhere to the CHARMS checklist and the TRIPOD statement. A systematic evaluation of the included studies will be performed to assess their risk of bias and applicability, utilizing the PROBAST tool. If appropriate, meta-analyses will be employed to synthesize quantitative data related to the predictive performance of these models. Clinical Trial: PROSPERO registration number CRD 1076202
Citation
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Copyright
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