SArcopenia Prevalence in Frail Older Adults. SAF Study

The age-associated loss of lean mass is a defining parameter of sarcopenia and may lead to various negative health outcomes such as impairment of physical performance and disability. Furthermore sarcopenia is considered to be one of the main factors in the pathogenesis of the frailty syndrome. However, for clinical use and for treatment and prevention strategies, reliable diagnostic criteria and cutpoints based on clinically relevant thresholds are indispensable. This topic has recently been addressed by the Foundation for the National Institutes of Health Sarcopenia Project which identified cutpoints for appendicular lean mass (ALM) below which older adults had a higher likelihood of clinically relevant weakness reflected by low grip strength. Moreover, a low ALM-to-body mass index (BMI) ratio (\<0.789 men and \<0.512 women) was found to be associated with increased likelihood for mobility impairment. In this context, the aim of this study is to study the prevalence of sarcopenia in a sample of community-dwelling frail and pre-frail older adults.