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Observational Study
. 2022 Jan;34(1):113-120.
doi: 10.1007/s40520-021-01949-1. Epub 2021 Aug 16.

Prevalence of obesity and diabetes in older people with sarcopenia defined according to EWGSOP2 and FNHI criteria

Francesca Remelli  1 , Elisa Maietti  1   2 , Pasquale Abete  3 , Giuseppe Bellelli  4 , Mario Bo  5 , Antonio Cherubini  6 , Francesco Corica  7 , Mauro Di Bari  8   9 , Marcello Maggio  10 , Maria Rosaria Rizzo  11 , Andrea P Rossi  12 , Francesco Landi  13 , Stefano Volpato  14   15 ; GLISTEN Group Investigators
Collaborators, Affiliations
Observational Study

Prevalence of obesity and diabetes in older people with sarcopenia defined according to EWGSOP2 and FNHI criteria

Francesca Remelli et al. Aging Clin Exp Res. 2022 Jan.

Abstract

Background: Although the prevalence of sarcopenic obesity is increasing, nowadays a universally accepted definition still does not exist. Because, this clinical entity is defined as the combination of obesity and sarcopenia, the diagnosis appears to be strictly linked to criteria used for sarcopenia and the available prevalence data are not uniform. To investigate the prevalence of sarcopenic obesity in older persons according to EWGSOP2 and FNIH criteria. Second, to evaluate the prevalence of diabetes in patients with sarcopenia diagnosed by the two definitions.

Methods: Observational multicenter study performed in 2014 on older patients admitted to 12 Italian hospitals (GLISTEN Study). Data were collected through standardized questionnaires, which assessed: socio-demographic data, cognitive status, functional abilities, pharmacological therapy, comorbidities, and blood tests. Moreover, muscle mass and strength and physical performance were evaluated.

Results: Six hundred and ten were included in the analyses. Among sarcopenic patients, the prevalence of sarcopenic obesity was 30.8% with FNIH and 0% with EWGSOP2 criteria. According to EWGSOP2 criteria, 23.7% of sarcopenic and 30.8% of non-sarcopenic patients were affected by diabetes (p = 0.101); otherwise, using FNIH criteria, 36.3% of sarcopenic and 26.9% of non-sarcopenic patients were diabetic (p = 0.030). After adjustment for potential confounders, diabetic patients had a 73% higher probability of being sarcopenic according to FNIH criteria (OR 1.73; 95% CI 1.13-2.64).

Conclusions: The EWGSOP2 and FNIH sarcopenia criteria are differently related to the prevalence of obesity and diabetes. The EWGSOP2 criteria seem to be not suitable to identify people with sarcopenic obesity.

Keywords: Acute care; Diabetes; Mortality; Sarcopenia; Sarcopenic obesity.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors have not conflict of interest.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Prevalence of sarcopenic obesity according to FNIH and EWGSOP2 criteria
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Prevalence of diabetes related to sarcopenia diagnosed by EWGSOP2 or FNIH criteria
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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