Associations of sarcopenia and malnutrition risks with mortality among hospitalized older adults: a retrospective...

Sarcopenia and malnutrition are highly prevalent in older adults and are associated with reduced function, exacerbation of diseases and mortality. This study aimed to assess the prevalence of nutritional risk, malnutrition, sarcopenia risk, and malnutrition-sarcopenia syndrome risk in hospitalized older adults and investigate the association between these clinical conditions and one-year mortality. Retrospective cohort study was conducted to analyze screening data for malnutrition and sarcopenia in older adults admitted to a hospital. The Kaplan-Meier curve and the adjusted Cox proportional hazards model were used for data analysis. A total of 2,425 older adults were assessed. Prevalence of nutritional risk (48.2%), malnutrition (33.9%), sarcopenia risk (40%), and malnutrition-sarcopenia syndrome risk (39.1%) was found. Malnutrition (HR 2.17; 95%CI 1.30-3.61; p = 0.003) and malnutrition-sarcopenia syndrome risk (HR 1.20; 95%CI 1.10-1.31; p < 0.001) increased the risk of one-year mortality. Immediate intervention in cases of older adults identified with malnutrition and at risk for malnutrition-sarcopenia syndrome at admission can effectively improve the health services provided for this population.