Consequences of applying the new EWGSOP2 guideline instead of the former EWGSOP guideline for sarcopenia case finding in older patients

Abstract

Introduction we examined the consequences of applying the new EWGSOP2 algorithm for sarcopenia screening instead of the former EWGSOP algorithm (EWGSOP1) in geriatric inpatients. Methods the dataset of our formerly published Sarcopenia in Geriatric Elderly (SAGE) study includes 144 geriatric inpatients (86 women, 58 men, mean age 80.7±5.6 years) with measurements of gait speed, handgrip strength and appendicular muscle mass by dual x-ray absorptiometry (DXA). We analysed the agreement between EWGSOP and EWGSOP2 algorithms in identifying patients as sarcopenic/non-sarcopenic. Differences in the distribution sarcopenic vs. non-sarcopenic were assessed by Chi²-test. Results sarcopenia prevalence according to EWGSOP1 (41 (27.7%)) was significantly higher than with EWGSOP2 (26(18.1%), p<0.05). The sex-specific sarcopenia prevalence was 22.1% (EWGSOP1) and 17.4% (EWGSOP2), respectively, for women (difference not significant) and 37.9% vs. 19.4% for men (p<0.05%). The overall agreement in classifying subjects as sarcopenic/non-sarcopenic was 81.25% (81.4% for women, 81.0% for men). However, among the 41 sarcopenia cases identified by EWGSOP1, only 20 (48.8%) were diagnosed with sarcopenia by EWGSOP2 (9/19 w (47.4%), 11/22 m (50.0%)). Ten of 19 women (52.6%) and 11 of 22 men (50.0%) diagnosed with sarcopenia by EWGSOP1 were missed by EWGSOP2, while 6 of 15 women (40.0%) and 0 of 11 men (0.0%) were newly diagnosed. Discussion there is a substantial mismatch in sarcopenia case finding according to EWGSOP1 and EWGSOP2. The overall prevalence and the number of men diagnosed with sarcopenia are significantly lower in EWGSOP2. While the absolute number of women identified as sarcopenic remains relatively constant, the overlap of individual cases between the two definitions is low.

Prevalence of sarcopenia among hospitalized internal medicine patients: A cross-sectional single-center pilot study according to EWGSOP2 criteria

“…The prevalence of low functional status was also numerically higher in men (65%) than in women (40%), but low gait speed was found among similar proportions of patients (60% vs. 55%). Some sex-related differences in the prevalence of sarcopenia and its outcome have been reported (19,20,24). It appears that in men, chronic diseases lead to a more dynamic decline in muscle mass.…”

“…However, the previous studies have used different diagnostic criteria not allowing for a direct comparison with our study using EWGSOP2 criteria. One study has compared the prevalence of sarcopenia using both EWGSOP1 and 2 algorithms showing a slightly lower prevalence of 27.7 vs.18.1% when using EWG-SOP2 criteria (20).…”

Sarcopenia and Liver Cirrhosis—Comparison of the European Working Group on Sarcopenia Criteria 2010 and 2019

“…[26]. In geriatric patients, the literature is conflicting showing higher [27][28][29] or equal [30,31] rates of sarcopenia with the 2010 compared to the 2019 definition. The predictive utility for complications seems to be different for the 2010 and 2019 definition-in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease both definitions performed well, whereas in the UK biobank cohort the 2010 definition was superior in predicting poorer health outcome.…”

Vitamin D and Sarcopenia: Potential of Vitamin D Supplementation in Sarcopenia Prevention and Treatment

“…EWGSOP2-defined sarcopenia prevalence was lower than that defined using EWGSOP-1 criteria due to the difference in diagnostic factors to detect sarcopenia. Reiss et al reported a sarcopenia prevalence of 18.1% using the EWGSOP2 criteria versus a 27.7% prevalence with the EWGSOP criteria in 144 geriatric patients [ 11 ]. Similarly, in a study with 501 subjects, Locquet et al observed a prevalence of sarcopenia of 7.4% and 13.6% for EWGSOP2 and EWGSOP, respectively [ 12 ].…”