Multimorbidity, healthcare utilization, and quality of life for older patients undergoing surgery: A prospective study.

Multimorbidity (≥2 chronic illnesses) is a worldwide healthcare challenge. Patients with multimorbidity have a reduced quality of life and higher mortality than healthy patients and use healthcare resources more intensively. This study investigated the prevalence of multimorbidity; examined the effects of multimorbidity on healthcare utilization; healthcare costs of multimorbidity; and compared the associations between the health-related quality of life (HRQoL) of older patients undergoing surgery and multimorbidity, the Charlson Comorbidity Index (CCI), the Simple Frailty Questionnaire (FRAIL), and the American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) physical status classifications.