Sarcopenia in Peripheral Arterial Disease: Prevalence and Effect on Functional Status.
Odessa Addison, Steven J Prior, Rishi Kundi and 4 others
PMID 29138051WHAT IT FOUND
Men with peripheral arterial disease had ten times the prevalence of sarcopenia compared to healthy matched controls.
Among those with PAD, low muscle mass was linked to significantly slower recovery from claudication pain and shorter walking distances on the six-minute test.
Key findings
01Sarcopenia prevalence was 23.8% in men with PAD compared to 2.4% in matched healthy controls.
02Men with PAD and sarcopenia took approximately 37% longer to recover from claudication pain and walked 14% less distance in six minutes than men with PAD but no sarcopenia.
03Men with PAD had lower leg, total body, and trunk lean mass compared to healthy controls, indicating whole-body muscle loss rather than just leg wasting.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTsWhat it means for OTs
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What it does not show
The study included only men, so results cannot be generalized to women with PAD. Sarcopenia was defined by muscle mass only, without including grip strength or gait speed, which are often part of broader definitions. The control group was drawn from studies that excluded many co-morbidities, potentially exaggerating the difference in muscle mass compared to a more typical healthy population. The study may have been underpowered to detect differences in some specific pain onset and questionnaire outcomes.
Declared interests
The authors declared no conflict of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not assume that treating the sarcopenia will automatically improve the PAD symptoms or walking distance. This study shows an association between low muscle mass and worse function, but it did not test whether interventions to build muscle improve these outcomes.