Assessment and significance of sarcopenia in liver transplantation

Sarcopenia frequently occurs in cirrhotic patients who are waiting for liver transplantation (LT). This disease is associated with increased morbidity and mortality rates during the LT period. Recently, the careful assessment of nutritional status for end-stage liver disease patients has received a great deal of attention; hence, numerous methods of evaluating sarcopenia have been proposed. However, most of the methods have limitations, including a lack of objectivity, reproducibility, and ability to discriminate prognoses. In addition, many reports suggest that sarcopenia be used as an adjustment factor for the selection criteria of LT and that sarcopenia be incorporated into the selection criteria for living donor LT in our center. In this article, based on a literature review, we aim to identify the current definition of sarcopenia, the available methods of measurement, the potential novel interventions for the treatment of malnutrition and the significance of sarcopenia in LT.