Impact of sarcopenia on gait independence in older orthopaedic patients: a comparison of 2 diagnostic algorithms.
Taiki Ikemoto, Mitsunori Tokuda, Yuki Morikawa and 5 others
PMID 40151090WHAT IT FOUND
In older orthopaedic inpatients, ISarcoPRM sarcopenia was more common among patients whose walking independence worsened during hospitalization.
AWGS2019 sarcopenia was not.
Key findings
01In the adjusted analysis, sarcopenia defined by the ISarcoPRM algorithm was significantly associated with worsened gait independence on discharge (odds ratio 3.94, 95% confidence interval 1.51 to 10.25, p = 0.005).
02In the adjusted analysis, sarcopenia defined by the AWGS2019 algorithm was not significantly associated with worsened gait independence on discharge (odds ratio 1.08, 95% confidence interval 0.42 to 2.80, p = 0.88).
03Sarcopenia was present in 56.2% of patients by ISarcoPRM and 36.6% by AWGS2019, and 26.8% had worsened gait independence on discharge.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTs
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What it does not show
The study is observational, so it cannot show that sarcopenia caused worsened walking independence. The methods section says 812 patients were included, but the analysis included 153; the supplied text does not explain this difference. Only 26.8% had worsened gait, and the confidence interval for the ISarcoPRM association was wide (1.51 to 10.25), so the estimate is imprecise. Patients had to be able to walk with supervision or independently before admission and neurological complications were excluded, so the findings may not apply to more independent patients or those with neurological problems. The authors suggest postoperative oedema may have affected the AWGS2019 body composition measure, which could influence the comparison between algorithms.
Declared interests
The authors declared no conflicts of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that identifying sarcopenia by ISarcoPRM will predict or improve walking independence. This was an observational association in hospitalised older orthopaedic patients, and no intervention was tested.