Adjusting Anterior Thigh Muscle Measurements Using Ultrasound in Sarcopenia

First of all, the authors measured appendicular skeletal muscle mass (ASM) and leg muscle mass by using DXA and adjusted them by dividing height square i.e. skeletal muscle mass index (SMI), leg muscle mass index (LM/h2), respectively. [...]even though they found correlations between the muscle CSA and muscle function, CT is not a convenient method for daily clinical practice whereby US measurements of the anterior thigh muscle mass is advocated instead. While we found higher correlations regarding the chair stand test (a power/strength test), timed up and go test and knee extensor strength; grip strength and gait speed did not show any correlation in males — possibly due to small sample size and their relatively better physical performances. Since both studies have indicated that anterior thigh (quadriceps) muscle measurements (CSA and muscle thickness) showed higher correlations with muscle power/strength and performance test and that anterior thigh muscle is affected at first with aging; we imply that adjusted anterior midthigh muscle measurements (BMI for thickness and weight for CSA) should be used not only for the analyses but also for defining the cut-off values in the diagnosis of sarcopenia.