ArticleThe Lancet. Global health2026
Prevalence and outcomes of intrinsic capacity impairments assessed using the WHO Integrated Care for Older People (ICOPE) framework in The Gambia, South Africa, and Zimbabwe: a cross-sectional study.
Article in The Lancet. Global health, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.
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
2 citing papers in PubMed.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
14 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundDespite rising longevity across Africa, the epidemiology of intrinsic capacity (combination of mental and physical capacities) impairments (ICIs) is understudied. We aimed to determine the prevalence of ICIs and associated sociodemographic and lifestyle factors, pain, functional limitations, and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) across three African countries.
methodsThis population-based cross-sectional study recruited adults aged 40 years and older in five settings: rural (n=1052) and urban (n=1218) Gambia, rural (n=948) and urban (n=968) South Africa, and urban Zimbabwe (n=1110). Researcher-administered questionnaires and physical assessments quantified ICIs. Pain was assessed using the Brief Pain Inventory, functional limitations using Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index (WOMAC), and HRQoL using the 5-level EQ-5D. Setting-specific associations between sociodemographic and lifestyle factors and ICIs were meta-analysed. Differences in pain, function, and HRQoL scores were computed according to ICI number.
findingsThe 5296 adults had a mean age of 61·0 (SD 12·9) years; 2823 (53·3%) were female and 2473 (46·7%) were male. Prevalence of two or more ICIs was 62·4% (59·4-65·3) in rural Gambia, 57·6% (54·8-60·4) in urban Gambia, 67·6% (64·5-70·6) in rural South Africa, 72·1% (69·2-74·9) in urban South Africa, and 64·8% (61·9-67·6) in urban Zimbabwe. Having two or more ICIs was more common in those aged 55-69 years (pooled sex-adjusted odds ratio [OR] 1·79 [95% CI 1·51-2·11]) and 70 years and older (7·21 [5·01-10·37]), female individuals (pooled age-adjusted OR 1·73 [95% CI 1·35-2·22]), those who were underweight (pooled age-adjusted and sex-adjusted OR 4·72 [3·41-6·54]), those with lower wealth index (1·38 [1·20-1·58]), those with food insecurity (1·92 [1·17-3·17]), and those who reported current or former tobacco use (1·47 [1·18-1·83]). Overall mean values were 3·95 (SD 10·64) for pain score, 14·17 (18·36) for WOMAC score, and 0·83 (0·11) for HRQoL. Compared with no impairment (n=554 [10·5%]), having two or more ICIs was associated with 2·34-fold (95% CI 1·92-2·84) greater functional limitation, 2·44-fold more pain (1·86-3·20), and lower HRQoL (mean difference -0·06 [-0·07 to -0·05]).
interpretationIn both rural and urban African settings, common ICIs necessitate urgent interventions to maximise functional ability and reduce the effect on quality of life. Individuals most at risk include women, those aged ≥55 years, and people with low socioeconomic status.
fundingNational Institute for Health Research (NIHR), NIHR-Wellcome Partnership for Global Health Research, and Medical Research Council Musculoskeletal Functional Ability in sub-Saharan Africa. TRANSLATIONS: For the Shona and isiZulu translations of the abstract see Supplementary Materials section.
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.