Investigation of Sarcopenia and Its Association with Cardiometabolic Risk Factors in Elderly Subjects

Abstract

The aim of this study was to investigate sarcopenia and its association with cardiometabolic risk factors in a community-based elderly cohort in Korea. Methods: We recruited 287 men and 278 women aged 65 years or older and without physical disability. Appendicular skeletal muscle mass (ASM) was measured with dual energy X-ray absorptiometry. We used two definitions for sarcopenia-ASM divided by height 2 (kg/m 2 ) or by weight (%) <1 SD below the sex-specific mean for young adults. We compared RBP-4, adiponectin, hsCRP, lipid profiles, and insulin resistance between the sarcopenic and normal groups using ASM/Ht 2 and ASM/Wt. Results: The prevalence of sarcopenia was 35.3% in men and 13.4% in women with sarcopenia defined by ASM/Ht 2 . However, it was 38.3% in men and 62.6% in women by ASM/Wt. In correlation analysis, body mass index was positively correlated with ASM/Ht 2 and negatively correlated with ASM/Wt. The sarcopenic group, when defined as ASM/Ht 2 , showed lower RBP4, fasting plasma glucose, and HOMA-IR and higher adiponectin than the normal group but not significantly different lipid profiles. The sarcopenic group defined by ASM/Wt had higher RBP4, fasting plasma glucose, and HOMA-IR, and lower adiponectin than the normal group in both sexes. Only in the males did the sarcopenic group defined by ASM/Wt reveal higher total cholesterol, triglycerides, and LDL cholesterol, and lower HDL cholesterol than the normal group.