Key numbers
17
Studies with standardized data
16,534
Total participants pooled
76 ± 3 years
Mean age in pooled studies
3.25
Odds ratio, total SPPB 0-3 versus 10-12 (95% CI 2.86 to 3.79)
What they asked and who was included
The Short Physical Performance Battery (SPPB) is a well-established tool for assessing lower-body physical performance. Before this review, its link with all-cause mortality had been sparsely reported, with conflicting results in different groups, so the authors set out to pool the evidence.
They searched MEDLINE, the Cochrane Library, Google Scholar and BioMed Central between July and September 2015, updating in January 2016. Studies had to be observational, have more than 50 participants, group people by SPPB score, report all-cause mortality and be published in English. Twenty-four articles were selected, and standardized data were obtained for 17 studies with 16,534 participants.
How the analysis worked
Participants were placed in four score groups (0-3, 4-6, 7-9 and 10-12), with 10-12 as the comparison group. Estimates were adjusted for age, sex and body mass index.
What they found
Each lower total-SPPB group was associated with higher all-cause mortality than the 10-12 group: an odds ratio of 3.25 (95%CI 2.86-3.79) for 0-3, 2.14 (95%CI 1.92-2.39) for 4-6 and 1.50 (95%CI 1.32-1.71) for 7-9. The authors conclude that a score lower than 10 is predictive of all-cause mortality.
The association stayed highly consistent regardless of follow-up length, subsets of participants, geographic area and the age of the population. For scores of 7-9, the odds ratio was higher in younger populations, in people with diabetes and in men.
The authors suggest the SPPB could give useful prognostic information in clinical practice, and could serve as a stand-in measure for all-cause mortality in trials of treatments or rehabilitation programs.
What this does not show
These are associations from observational studies of older adults, not proof that a low score causes death. The review used the battery's total score, so it says nothing on its own about a single chair stand, and it is not evidence for the Systematic Sitting-Rising Test or any other Systematic test.
The evidence
Each cited source is labeled according to how it supports the particular claim on this page. Direct test evidence, underlying-capacity findings and population reference values are distinguished from Systematic-defined protocols and standards. Historical development notes are retained internally rather than presented as public evidence. A study of an underlying capacity is never presented as validation of the Systematic test itself.
-
Underlying-capacity evidence New source
Pavasini et al. (2016). Short Physical Performance Battery and all-cause mortality: systematic review and meta-analysis. BMC medicine.
What it found. Across 17 pooled studies (16,534 participants, mean age 76 ± 3 years), SPPB totals of 0-3, 4-6 and 7-9 were associated with higher all-cause mortality than 10-12, with odds ratios of 3.25, 2.14 and 1.50.
What it does not show. It evaluates the total battery score, not a single chair stand or any Systematic test, and it does not show cause.
The Systematic Healthspan Assessment is a physical baseline. It is not a diagnosis, and it does not estimate a biological age, a disease risk or a lifespan.