Impact of Sarcopenia on Erectile Function after Nerve-Sparing Robot-Assisted Radical Prostatectomy

Purpose: To determine the impact of sarcopenia on erectile functional outcomes after a nerve-sparing (NS) robot-assisted radical prostatectomy (RARP) using patient-reported validated questionnaires. Materials and Methods: In this retrospective study, RARP was performed on 841 patients at Okayama University Hospital, of which 132 underwent NS RARP. Erectile functional outcomes were assessed using the 5-item version of the International Index of Erectile Function (IIEF-5) and the Expanded Prostate Cancer Index Composite before and 1, 3, 6, and 12 months after surgery. Automated measurement of skeletal muscle at L3 was achieved using volume analyzer software and normalizing for height (cm(2)/m(2)) to calculate skeletal muscle index (SMI). Patients who had an IIEF-5