SynthesisEuropean geriatric medicine2026
Rehabilitation outcomes of older persons within the context of the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF): a systematic review.
Synthesis in European geriatric medicine, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
1 citing paper in PubMed.
- Establishing the human functioning sciences sections in frontiers in rehabilitation sciences.Frontiers in rehabilitation sciences · 2026Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
purposeWith the ageing population, more older persons require rehabilitation following (sub)acute functional decline. The International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF) model offers a biopsychosocial framework to address complexities of rehabilitation in this population. This systematic review investigates which ICF components have been reported in rehabilitation research involving older persons, which rehabilitation outcomes have been reported, and whether, and how associations between ICF components and rehabilitation outcomes have been described.
methodsA comprehensive search was conducted in three databases. Studies involving older persons (mean or median age ≥ 70 years) undergoing post-acute rehabilitation, with health data linked to the ICF model and rehabilitation outcomes, were included. Study quality was assessed using the Methodological Index for Non-Randomized Studies (MINORS) by two independent reviewers.
resultsSeven studies involving 896 patients were included. Associations were found between ICF components, particularly body functions and activities and participation, and improved functional independence and quality of life. Environmental factors also contributed to outcomes, whereas personal factors did not appear, reflecting their absence from the formal ICF coding structure.
conclusionThis review shows that body functions and activities and participation are most consistently linked to clinical outcomes in older persons, reflecting their central role in functional independence and quality of life. Environmental factors were examined less often, yet contextual factors (including personal factors) remain important for understanding recovery and personalized care. These findings clarify which ICF-based functional profiles are routinely captured and support more structured, person-centred assessment across the rehabilitation trajectory. Further research should include personal factors and longer-term outcomes.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.