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BACKGROUND The early prediction of frailty at discharge in elderly patients hospitalized with heart failure (HF) is essential for clinical management and therapeutic decision-making. This study was performed to examine whether the rising time from bed measured immediately after admission can be used as a predictor of frailty in these patients. METHODS A retrospective cohort study was performed in a population of 387 consecutive elderly patients with HF. Rising time from bed was measured within 2 days after admission when cardiac rehabilitation was started. Frailty was assessed at hospital discharge using a composite of four markers as a frailty score (range, 0-12): gait speed, handgrip strength, serum albumin, and activities of daily living status. The patients were divided into two groups based on frailty score <5 (non-frail) or ≥5 (frail). RESULTS The study population had a mean age of 75 years and 63.6 % were men. The median rising time was 6.8s, and 53.5 % were classified as frail. After adjustment for various factors, rising time was independently associated with frailty (odds ratio=1.10; 95 % confidence index=1.04-1.18). The area under the receiver operating characteristics curve of rising time for frailty was 0.71, and the cut-off value for rising time to identify those at high risk of frailty was 7.1s. CONCLUSIONS Rising time from bed measured within 2 days after admission was shown to be an independent predictor of frailty at hospital discharge in elderly patients hospitalized for HF.