Ultrasound Cut-Off Values for Rectus Femoris for Detecting Sarcopenia in Patients with Nutritional Risk.

Area of Science:

• Gerontology
• Medical Imaging
• Nutritional Science

Background:

• Sarcopenia is a significant concern in malnourished hospitalized patients.
• Early detection is crucial for effective management and improved patient outcomes.
• The Disease-Related caloric-protein malnutrition EChOgraphy (DRECO) study aimed to evaluate ultrasound's role.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the utility of rectus femoris ultrasound for sarcopenia detection in at-risk hospitalized patients.
• To establish reliable cut-off values for ultrasound measures to diagnose sarcopenia.
• To integrate ultrasound into routine nutritional assessments.

Main Methods:

• A prospective, multicenter cohort study involving 1000 hospitalized patients at risk of malnutrition (identified by MUST).
• Evaluated patients using handgrip dynamometry, BIA, TUG test, and rectus femoris ultrasound.
• Applied EWGSOP2 criteria for sarcopenia classification and ROC/AUC analyses for diagnostic accuracy.

Main Results:

• Sarcopenia prevalence: 9.6% at risk, 14% probable, 9.7% confirmed, 3.9% severe.
• Rectus femoris muscle cross-sectional area (CSA) correlated positively with body cell mass and handgrip strength, and negatively with TUG.
• Established cut-off values for CSA, X-axis, and Y-axis measures, demonstrating high sensitivity, especially for confirmed and severe sarcopenia.

Conclusions:

• Sarcopenia is highly prevalent in malnourished hospitalized patients.
• Defined ultrasound cut-off values offer improved sensitivity and specificity for sarcopenia detection.
• Rectus femoris ultrasound is a valuable tool for predicting sarcopenia and aiding clinical nutritional assessment.