Assessment and Scoring of Intrinsic Capacity in Older Adults: An Integrative Literature Review.

Purpose: Promotion and maintenance of healthy aging is of utmost importance given the growing number of older adults worldwide. Fluctuation in intrinsic capacity (IC), defined as mental and physical functions, can be assessed objectively with an assigned score to predict health outcomes. The goal of the current review was to identify common measurement tools for IC assessment and evaluate IC scoring approaches.

Method: Seventeen studies met inclusion criteria for assessing five domains: vitality, locomotion, cognitive, psychological, and sensory.

Results: Reviewed studies used diverse instruments with inconsistent scoring approaches. Scoring ranged from simple additive scores to complex item response theory models.

Conclusion: Establishing consistency in assessment and scoring for IC will ensure usability of scores in clinical practice to promote healthy aging and identify older adults at risk for disability or care dependence. Additional research is needed to establish consensus in standardized scoring, assessment, and measurement of IC. [Journal of Gerontological Nursing, xx(x), xx-xx.].