The Impact of Different Diagnostic Criteria on the Prevalence of Sarcopenia in Healthy Elderly Participants and Geriatric Outpatients

Abstract Background: A consensus on the diagnostic criteria for sarcopenia, a common syndrome in the elderly, has not been reached yet. Prevalence rates vary between studies due to the use of different criteria encompassing different measures, correction factors and cutoff points. Objective: This study compared prevalence rates of sarcopenia using nine sets of diagnostic criteria applied in two different elderly populations. Methods: The study population encompassed 308 healthy elderly participants (152 males, 156 females; mean age 74 years) and 123 geriatric outpatients (54 males, 69 females; mean age 81 years). Diagnostic criteria included relative muscle mass, absolute muscle mass, muscle strength and physical performance. Results: Prevalence rates of sarcopenia varied between 0 and 15% in healthy elderly participants and between 2 and 34% in geriatric outpatients. Conclusion: This study clearly demonstrates the dependency of sarcopenia prevalence rates on the applied diagnostic criteria.