# Research hotspots and trends in intrinsic capacity of older people in the context of population aging based on CiteSpace

## TL;DR

This study uses bibliometric analysis to explore research trends and hotspots in the intrinsic capacity of older people, aiming to guide future research and promote healthy aging.

## Contribution

The study identifies distinct research hotspots and trends in Chinese and English literature on intrinsic capacity, highlighting gaps and future directions.

## Key findings

- Chinese research focuses on influencing factors and evaluation tools, while English studies emphasize intervention strategies and muscle strength.
- Collaboration among European researchers is strong, whereas Chinese research shows regionalism and weaker collaboration.
- Future research directions include social support, supplementation, and the role of inflammation in aging.

## Abstract

To employ bibliometrics to identify the research hotspots and development trends of the intrinsic capacity of older people, thereby providing novel insights for future studies on the management of intrinsic capacity in older adults and further facilitating the advancement of healthy aging.

The literature on the intrinsic capacity of older people, published by China National Knowledge Infrastructure, Wanfang, VIP, and SinoMed, as well as the Web of Science Core Collection, was searched from January 2015 to December 2024. The Note Express 4.1.0 software was used for literature management, and the CiteSpace 6.4. R1 software was used to visually analyze the characteristics of the number of publications, countries, institutions, authors, and keywords, and to plot the relevant graphs.

A total of 97 Chinese literature and 745 English literature were included. The number of publications on the older adults’ intrinsic capacity has shown an increasing trend both domestically and internationally. In the past 5 years, intrinsic capacity has received extensive attention, with 96.9% of Chinese papers and 79.6% of English papers published from 2020 to 2024. European researchers collaborate closely, whereas Chinese research shows weaker collaboration and strong regionalism. Keyword analysis identified 6 clusters in Chinese literature and 17 in English. Chinese hotspots mainly include influencing factors, evaluation tools, chronic disease, grip strength, frailty, and falls. Future directions focus on quality of life, social support, and the recovery period. English studies center on association, management, muscle strength, frailty, exercise, and social support, with potential future directions in supplementation and inflammation.

Currently, Chinese research primarily focuses on analyzing influencing factors, with relatively few studies examining intervention measures, while English research has progressed to exploring of intervention strategies. As population aging accelerates, cross-institutional and interdisciplinary cooperation is becoming a key trend. Future research should deepen understanding, particularly for high-risk groups, and explore the effects of supplements, the predictive role of inflammatory markers, and the effectiveness of interventions for this population. These endeavors will contribute to providing precise and personalized management programs for older adults, enhance social support and quality of life, and promote the comprehensive implementation of healthy aging strategies.