This study aimed to determine the prevalence of intrinsic capacity (IC) impairment among community-dwelling older adults in Cameroon, and to assess the applicability of ICOPE Step 1 cutoffs for nutrition and locomotion.

A national cross-sectional study was conducted from January to June 2024 across the ten regions of Cameroon. A two-stage sampling method was used to include 597 older adults (≥ 60 years). IC was assessed using step 1 of the Integrated Care to Older People (ICOPE) screening tool. For validation, Step 1 vitality was compared against the Mini Nutritional Assessment Short-Form (MNA-SF), and Step 1 locomotion against the Rosow-Breslau disability score. Any impairment reported for one of the IC domains was considered as positive screening. A p-value < 0.05 was used to define statistical significance.

A total of 597 participants were included with a majority of women (54.9 %). The median age was 68 (interquartile range 63–73) years. Furthermore, validation analyses showed that impaired vitality at Step 1 had a sensitivity of 62.7 % and a specificity of 77.3 %. The PPV was 84.3 % and a significant agreement was found ( K = 0.357; p < 0.001). Regarding locomotion, a highly significant difference ( p < 0.001) in Rosow-Breslau mean scores was observed between participants with and without an alert (1.23 vs 2.19, respectively), validating the tool for physical disability screening in this context. Overall, 96.8 % had at least one impaired domain. Nineteen participants (3.2 %) had no impaired domain, while 61 (10.2 %) had impairment in one domain. A total of 134 participants (22.4 %) presented impairment in two domains and 162 (27.1 %) in three domains. Impairment in four domains was observed in 114 participants (19.1 %), whereas 80 participants (13.4 %) had five affected domains. The highest level of impairment, involving all six domains was found in 27 participants (4.5 %). The most frequently affected domains were locomotion (81.4 %), psychological well-being (73.4 %) and vision (60 %).

Intrinsic capacity impairment is highly prevalent among older adults in Cameroon. Our findings support the validity and applicability of the ICOPE Step 1 tool for community-based screening, particularly for the vitality and locomotion domains. Integrating this tool into primary care could facilitate early identification of geriatric syndromes.