Background: Frailty is not universal among older people but increases the risk of dependence.

Aim: To assess frailty among older people and its relationship with biological, psychological and social factors.

Material and methods: Seven hundred fifty four older people aged 73 ± 6 years (61% females), attending a public primary care were assessed. Frailty was defined according to Fried criteria that considers inexplicable weight loss, tiredness, muscle weakness and lack of physical activity.

Results: Absence of frailty, pre-frailty and frailty was found in 26, 69 and 5% of participants, respectively. Significant differences between frailty groups were observed for age, gender, years of studies, minimental and self-efficacy scores. Among participants defined as being in a pre-frail condition, 59% were non-disabled without risk and 41% non-disabled in risk, according to the functional assessment for older people used in Chilean primary care clinics.

Conclusions: Frailty among older people is associated with increasing age, education, cognitive status and self-efficacy.