Probable and confirmed sarcopenia are still better predictors of disability than sarcopenic obesity following ESPEN/EASO consensus steps

Abstract Background Studies comparing different operational definitions of sarcopenia (S) and sarcopenic obesity (SO) defined according to the ‘’European Society for Clinical Nutrition and Metabolism and the European Association for the Study of Obesity’’ (ESPEN/EASO) criteria with functionality are...

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Main Authors: Sibel Cavdar, Fatma Ozge Kayhan Kocak, Sumru Savas
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: BMC 2025-04-01
Series:BMC Geriatrics
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Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1186/s12877-025-05897-7
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author Sibel Cavdar
Fatma Ozge Kayhan Kocak
Sumru Savas
author_facet Sibel Cavdar
Fatma Ozge Kayhan Kocak
Sumru Savas
author_sort Sibel Cavdar
collection DOAJ
description Abstract Background Studies comparing different operational definitions of sarcopenia (S) and sarcopenic obesity (SO) defined according to the ‘’European Society for Clinical Nutrition and Metabolism and the European Association for the Study of Obesity’’ (ESPEN/EASO) criteria with functionality are scarce. Our aim is to investigate whether SO or S with different skeletal muscle mass (SMM) adjustments is better associated with functional disability. Methods This retrospective study was carried out in older individuals ≥ 65 years of age in a geriatric outpatient clinic. Probable and confirmed sarcopenia were evaluated with the revised European Working Group on Sarcopenia in Older People (EWGSOP2) criteria, and SO with ESPEN/EASO consensus steps. For SMM component for both S and SO, different adjustments (weight, body mass index, and height square (W, BMI, H2 respectively)) were used. Functional disability was examined with activities of daily living (ADL), and instrumental ADL (IADL). Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were drawn and area under ROC curve (AUC) were calculated to find which operational definition best predicts disability. Results Data from 1477 older adults were screened. 408 participants (median age; 73 (65–101), 65% female) were included. Prevelance of SO was 6.9%. Probable sarcopenia, confirmed sarcopenia BMI-adjusted and confirmed sarcopenia W-adjusted were significantly associated with impaired IADL (p < 0.001), and showed fair accuracy for predicting IADL disability. Sarcopenic obesity did not show significant associations with ADL and IADL disability and didn’t predict ADL and IADL disability. Only confirmed sarcopenia by BMI predicted ADL disability with poor accuracy. Among operational definitions of sarcopenia, probable sarcopenia had the highest sensitivity (83.6%) and negative predictive value (NPV) (94.2%) for predicting IADL disability. Conclusion We found that probable sarcopenia (with the highest sensitivity and NPV) and confirmed sarcopenia (BMI-adjusted with higher sensitivity and NPV than W-adjusted) were the most relevant for predicting IADL disability, but their diagnostic accuracy was limited. Confirmed sarcopenia by BMI predicted ADL disability with poor accuracy. Other operational definitions, including SO did not predict functional disability in our study. Future studies need to refine the definitions of SO and investigate its distinct impact on functional impairment compared to sarcopenia alone.
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spelling doaj-art-e46193035cf246fca1b58f309ce07fdd2025-08-20T02:17:49ZengBMCBMC Geriatrics1471-23182025-04-0125111010.1186/s12877-025-05897-7Probable and confirmed sarcopenia are still better predictors of disability than sarcopenic obesity following ESPEN/EASO consensus stepsSibel Cavdar0Fatma Ozge Kayhan Kocak1Sumru Savas2Department of Internal Medicine, Division of Geriatrics, Ege University HospitalDepartment of Internal Medicine, Division of Geriatrics, Ege University HospitalDepartment of Internal Medicine, Division of Geriatrics, Ege University HospitalAbstract Background Studies comparing different operational definitions of sarcopenia (S) and sarcopenic obesity (SO) defined according to the ‘’European Society for Clinical Nutrition and Metabolism and the European Association for the Study of Obesity’’ (ESPEN/EASO) criteria with functionality are scarce. Our aim is to investigate whether SO or S with different skeletal muscle mass (SMM) adjustments is better associated with functional disability. Methods This retrospective study was carried out in older individuals ≥ 65 years of age in a geriatric outpatient clinic. Probable and confirmed sarcopenia were evaluated with the revised European Working Group on Sarcopenia in Older People (EWGSOP2) criteria, and SO with ESPEN/EASO consensus steps. For SMM component for both S and SO, different adjustments (weight, body mass index, and height square (W, BMI, H2 respectively)) were used. Functional disability was examined with activities of daily living (ADL), and instrumental ADL (IADL). Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were drawn and area under ROC curve (AUC) were calculated to find which operational definition best predicts disability. Results Data from 1477 older adults were screened. 408 participants (median age; 73 (65–101), 65% female) were included. Prevelance of SO was 6.9%. Probable sarcopenia, confirmed sarcopenia BMI-adjusted and confirmed sarcopenia W-adjusted were significantly associated with impaired IADL (p < 0.001), and showed fair accuracy for predicting IADL disability. Sarcopenic obesity did not show significant associations with ADL and IADL disability and didn’t predict ADL and IADL disability. Only confirmed sarcopenia by BMI predicted ADL disability with poor accuracy. Among operational definitions of sarcopenia, probable sarcopenia had the highest sensitivity (83.6%) and negative predictive value (NPV) (94.2%) for predicting IADL disability. Conclusion We found that probable sarcopenia (with the highest sensitivity and NPV) and confirmed sarcopenia (BMI-adjusted with higher sensitivity and NPV than W-adjusted) were the most relevant for predicting IADL disability, but their diagnostic accuracy was limited. Confirmed sarcopenia by BMI predicted ADL disability with poor accuracy. Other operational definitions, including SO did not predict functional disability in our study. Future studies need to refine the definitions of SO and investigate its distinct impact on functional impairment compared to sarcopenia alone.https://doi.org/10.1186/s12877-025-05897-7SarcopeniaSarcopenic obesityESPEN/EASO consensus criteriaFunctional dependencyDisabilityEWGSOP2
spellingShingle Sibel Cavdar
Fatma Ozge Kayhan Kocak
Sumru Savas
Probable and confirmed sarcopenia are still better predictors of disability than sarcopenic obesity following ESPEN/EASO consensus steps
BMC Geriatrics
Sarcopenia
Sarcopenic obesity
ESPEN/EASO consensus criteria
Functional dependency
Disability
EWGSOP2
title Probable and confirmed sarcopenia are still better predictors of disability than sarcopenic obesity following ESPEN/EASO consensus steps
title_full Probable and confirmed sarcopenia are still better predictors of disability than sarcopenic obesity following ESPEN/EASO consensus steps
title_fullStr Probable and confirmed sarcopenia are still better predictors of disability than sarcopenic obesity following ESPEN/EASO consensus steps
title_full_unstemmed Probable and confirmed sarcopenia are still better predictors of disability than sarcopenic obesity following ESPEN/EASO consensus steps
title_short Probable and confirmed sarcopenia are still better predictors of disability than sarcopenic obesity following ESPEN/EASO consensus steps
title_sort probable and confirmed sarcopenia are still better predictors of disability than sarcopenic obesity following espen easo consensus steps
topic Sarcopenia
Sarcopenic obesity
ESPEN/EASO consensus criteria
Functional dependency
Disability
EWGSOP2
url https://doi.org/10.1186/s12877-025-05897-7
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AT fatmaozgekayhankocak probableandconfirmedsarcopeniaarestillbetterpredictorsofdisabilitythansarcopenicobesityfollowingespeneasoconsensussteps
AT sumrusavas probableandconfirmedsarcopeniaarestillbetterpredictorsofdisabilitythansarcopenicobesityfollowingespeneasoconsensussteps