Evidence Hub

Ageing trajectories of health-longitudinal opportunities and synergies (ATHLOS) Healthy Ageing Scale in adults from 16 international cohorts representing 38 countries worldwide

Critselis E, Panaretos D, Sánchez-Niubò A, Giné-Vázquez I, Ayuso-Mateos JL, Caballero FF, de la Fuente J, Haro JM et al.

Journal of epidemiology and community health, 2020

355 participants

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Uniform international measurement tools for assessing healthy ageing are currently lacking.

OBJECTIVES: The study assessed the novel comprehensive global Ageing Trajectories of Health: Longitudinal Opportunities and Synergies (ATHLOS) Healthy Ageing Scale, using an Item Response Theory approach, for evaluating healthy ageing across populations.

DESIGN: Pooled analysis of 16 international longitudinal studies.

SETTING: 38 countries in five continents.

SUBJECTS: International cohort (n=355 314), including 44.4% (n=153 597) males, aged (mean±SD) 61.7±11.5 years old.

METHODS: The ATHLOS Healthy Ageing Scale (including 41 items related to intrinsic capacity and functional ability) was evaluated in a pooled international cohort (n=355 314 from 16 studies) according to gender, country of residence and age group. It was also assessed in a subset of eight cohorts with ≥3 waves of follow-up assessment. The independent samples t-test and Mann-Whitney test were applied for comparing normally and skewed continuous variables between groups, respectively.

RESULTS: The ATHLOS Scale (range: 12.49-68.84) had a mean (±SD) value of 50.2±10.0, with males and individuals >65 years old exhibiting higher and lower mean scores, respectively. Highest mean scores were detected in Switzerland, Japan and Denmark, while lowest in Ghana, India and Russia. When the ATHLOS Scale was evaluated in a subset of cohorts with ≥3 study waves, mean scores were significantly higher than those of the…

How strong is the evidence?

Evidence Hub reads this as a cohort study, done in people. Its evidence level is 3 of 5 (Moderate · trial / cohort / secondary analysis). Trials without a large randomized design, cohorts and secondary analyses give moderate evidence. Reported size: 355 participants or records.

How the five levels of evidence work. The level is assigned automatically from the abstract and can be wrong, so check the paper.

Read the paper

Related studies

Go deeper in Evidence Hub

Evidence Hub adds a study data sheet (design, sample size, evidence level, key numbers), an AI summary and a chat grounded in the paper's text.

Open this study Sign up free