CoChat
Sign Up
Cited by 102Nutrition and Health in AgingMuscle Physiology and DisordersFrailty in Older Adults

The Effect of Resistance Training on the Rehabilitation of Elderly Patients with Sarcopenia: A Meta-Analysis

Open access
Zhao, Haotian, Cheng, Ruihong, Song, Ge, Teng, Jin, Shen, Siqin, Fu, Xuancheng, Yan, Yi, Liu, Chang·2022·International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
DOI 10.3390/ijerph192315491PMC PMC9739568
Open this paper in CoChat — free accountOpen PDF

Abstract

Resistance training is considered to be an efficient treatment for age-related sarcopenia and can improve muscle strength and quality in patients. However, there are currently no recommendations on resistance training parameters to improve muscle strength and quality in elderly patients with sarcopenia. We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and included 13 eligible RCTs. Resistance training significantly improved grip strength, gait speed, and skeletal muscle index in patients with age-related sarcopenia, and kettlebell was found to be the most effective modality. However, it is noteworthy that the elastic band is also a recommended form of resistance training considering that the kettlebell intervention was tested in only one study, while the elastic band was confirmed by multiple studies. Elastic band training (Hedges’s g = 0.629, 95%CI = 0.090–1.168, p < 0.05) (40–60 min per session, more than three times per week for at least 12 weeks) was the most efficient training method. Thus, resistance training can significantly improve muscle strength and muscle quality in elderly patients with sarcopenia. In addition, moderate-intensity resistance training using elastic bands may be the best training prescription for elderly patients with sarcopenia.

The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.

Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.

A few free checks a day · papers already verified open instantly · results are public

Integrity signals

Registry

Crossref · 10.3390/ijerph192315491

Cites

9 of 9 references verified0 citation errors · 0 not checkable

Statistics

Claims the paper makes

The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.

Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.

A few free checks a day · papers already verified open instantly · results are public

Claims other papers make about this one

Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?

  • Compared with no exercise control, resistance training significantly improves muscle size (hypertrophy).

    “Compared with no exercise (control), RT significantly improved muscle strength, size (hypertrophy), power, endurance, contraction velocity, gait speed, balance, and multiple physical function outcomes.”

    From American College of Sports Medicine Position Stand. Resistance Training Prescription for Muscle Function, Hypertrophy, and Physical Performance in Healthy Adults: An Overview of Reviews (2026) · cites this paper as [37]

    Results §3.3 reports a significant improvement in skeletal muscle index with resistance training, and Discussion §4.3 describes this as an improvement in skeletal muscle mass index. That supports increased muscle mass in elderly patients with sarcopenia, but the cited passages do not establish that the comparison was specifically against no exercise or that hypertrophy was measured directly. (LLM, conf=0.84)

    Experimental — accuracy not yet measured

  • Compared with control, standard resistance training improves muscle hypertrophy.

    “Compared with CTRL, muscle hypertrophy was positively affected by standard RT (17,24,30,32,33,37,38,40,42–47,50,127), circuit RT (57,58), and elastic band RT (60,62).”

    From American College of Sports Medicine Position Stand. Resistance Training Prescription for Muscle Function, Hypertrophy, and Physical Performance in Healthy Adults: An Overview of Reviews (2026) · cites this paper as [37]

    Results §3.3 reports that resistance training significantly improved skeletal muscle index in elderly patients with sarcopenia, using intervention–control comparisons described in Methods §2.5. That supports a positive effect on a muscle-mass measure, but the paper does not establish muscle hypertrophy specifically from standard RT as distinct from other resistance-training forms. (LLM, conf=0.83)

    Experimental — accuracy not yet measured

  • Resistance training improves gait speed compared with no exercise (CTRL) in healthy adults.

    “Compared with CTRL, gait speed was impacted by standard RT (17,30,32,33,36–38,47,53,152–155).”

    From American College of Sports Medicine Position Stand. Resistance Training Prescription for Muscle Function, Hypertrophy, and Physical Performance in Healthy Adults: An Overview of Reviews (2026) · cites this paper as [37]

    The Results (§3.3) report significantly improved gait speed after resistance training, and the Statistical Analysis (§2.5) describes comparison with control groups. But the included participants had sarcopenia, not the healthy adults specified in the claim; our copy also does not establish that every control group did no exercise. (LLM, conf=0.88)

    Experimental — accuracy not yet measured

Self-check

Percentages, sums and reported differences re-computed from the paper’s own numbers.

The self-check needs the paper’s full text.

Cites

Flagged first, then by citations

Research works printed but not linked: 29

  1. [1]Von Haehling S. Morley J.E. Anker S.D. An overview of sarcopenia: Facts and numbers on prevalence and clinical impact J. Cachexia Sarcopeni 2010 1 129 133 10.1007/s13539-010-0014-2 21475695 PMC3060646 · DOI · Paper page
  2. [2]Agergaard J. Bulow J. Jensen J.K. Reitelseder S. Drummond M.J. Schjerling P. Scheike T. Serena A. Holm L. Light-load resistance exercise increases muscle protein synthesis and hypertrophy signaling in elderly men Am. J. Physiol.-Endocrinol. Metab. 2017 312 E326 E338 10.1152/ajpendo.00164.2016 27780819 · DOI
  3. [4]Oliveira V. Borsari A.L. Cardenas J. Alves J.C. Castro N.F. Marinello P.C. Padilha C.S. Webel A.R. Erlandson K.M. Deminice R. Low Agreement Between Initial and Revised European Consensus on Definition and Diagnosis of Sarcopenia Applied to People Living With HIV Jaids-J. Acquir. Immune Defic. Syndr. 2021 86 e106 e113 10.1097/QAI.0000000000002576 33230028 · DOI
  4. [6]Larsson L. Grimby G. Karlsson J. Muscle strength and speed of movement in relation to age and muscle morphology J. Appl. Physiol. Respir. Environ. Exerc. Physiol. 1979 46 451 456 10.1152/jappl.1979.46.3.451 438011 · DOI · Paper page
  5. [7]Goodpaster B.H. Carlson C.L. Visser M. Kelley D.E. Scherzinger A. Harris T.B. Stamm E. Newman A.B. Attenuation of skeletal muscle and strength in the elderly: The Health ABC Study J. Appl. Physiol. 2001 90 2157 2165 10.1152/jappl.2001.90.6.2157 11356778 · DOI · Paper page
  6. [8]Fragala M.S. Cadore E.L. Dorgo S. Izquierdo M. Kraemer W.J. Peterson M.D. Ryan E.D. Resistance Training for Older Adults: Position Statement from the National Strength and Conditioning Association J. Strength Cond. Res. 2019 33 2019 2052 10.1519/JSC.0000000000003230 31343601 · DOI · Paper page
  7. [9]Wilkinson D.J. Piasecki M. Atherton P.J. The age-related loss of skeletal muscle mass and function: Measurement and physiology of muscle fibre atrophy and muscle fibre loss in humans Ageing Res. Rev. 2018 47 123 132 10.1016/j.arr.2018.07.005 30048806 PMC6202460 · DOI
  8. [10]Lee D.Y. Shin S. Sarcopenia Is Associated with Metabolic Syndrome in Korean Adults Aged over 50 Years: A Cross-Sectional Study Int. J. Env. Res. Pub. Health 2022 19 1330 10.3390/ijerph19031330 35162353 PMC8835141 · DOI
  9. [11]Giallauria F. Cittadini A. Smart N.A. Vigorito C. Resistance training and sarcopenia Monaldi. Arch. Chest Dis. 2016 84 738 10.4081/monaldi.2015.738 27374049 · DOI
  10. [12]Cruz-Jentoft A.J. Landi F. Schneider S.M. Zuniga C. Arai H. Boirie Y. Chen L.K. Fielding R.A. Martin F.C. Michel J.P. Prevalence of and interventions for sarcopenia in ageing adults: A systematic review. Report of the International Sarcopenia Initiative (EWGSOP and IWGS) Age Ageing 2014 43 748 759 10.1093/ageing/afu115 25241753 PMC4204661 · DOI · Paper page
  11. [13]Talar K. Hernandez-Belmonte A. Vetrovsky T. Steffl M. Kalamacka E. Courel-Ibanez J. Benefits of Resistance Training in Early and Late Stages of Frailty and Sarcopenia: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Studies J. Clin. Med. 2021 10 1630 10.3390/jcm10081630 33921356 PMC8070531 · DOI
  12. [14]Hecksteden A. Faude O. Meyer T. Donath L. How to Construct, Conduct and Analyze an Exercise Training Study? Front. Physiol. 2018 9 1007 10.3389/fphys.2018.01007 30140237 PMC6094975 · DOI
  13. [15]Cashin A.G. McAuley J.H. Clinimetrics: Physiotherapy Evidence Database (PEDro) Scale J. Physiother. 2020 66 59 10.1016/j.jphys.2019.08.005 31521549 · DOI · Paper page
  14. [17]Kim H. Suzuki T. Saito K. Yoshida H. Kojima N. Kim M. Sudo M. Yamashiro Y. Tokimitsu I. Effects of exercise and tea catechins on muscle mass, strength and walking ability in community-dwelling elderly Japanese sarcopenic women: A randomized controlled trial Geriatr. Gerontol. Int. 2013 13 458 465 10.1111/j.1447-0594.2012.00923.x 22935006 · DOI
  15. [18]Cadore E.L. Casas-Herrero A. Zambom-Ferraresi F. Idoate F. Millor N. Gomez M. Rodriguez-Manas L. Izquierdo M. Multicomponent exercises including muscle power training enhance muscle mass, power output, and functional outcomes in institutionalized frail nonagenarians Age 2014 36 773 785 10.1007/s11357-013-9586-z 24030238 PMC4039263 · DOI · Paper page
  16. [20]Kim H. Kim M. Kojima N. Fujino K. Hosoi E. Kobayashi H. Somekawa S. Niki Y. Yamashiro Y. Yoshida H. Exercise and Nutritional Supplementation on Community-Dwelling Elderly Japanese Women with Sarcopenic Obesity: A Randomized Controlled Trial J. Am. Med. Dir. Assoc. 2016 17 1011 1019 10.1016/j.jamda.2016.06.016 27544583 · DOI
  17. [21]Hassan B.H. Hewitt J. Keogh J.W. Bermeo S. Duque G. Henwood T.R. Impact of resistance training on sarcopenia in nursing care facilities: A pilot study Geriatr. Nurs. 2016 37 116 121 10.1016/j.gerinurse.2015.11.001 26694694 · DOI
  18. [23]Chen H.T. Chung Y.C. Chen Y.J. Ho S.Y. Wu H.J. Effects of Different Types of Exercise on Body Composition, Muscle Strength, and IGF-1 in the Elderly with Sarcopenic Obesity J. Am. Geriatr. Soc. 2017 65 827 832 10.1111/jgs.14722 28205203 · DOI · Paper page
  19. [24]Chen H.T. Wu H.J. Chen Y.J. Ho S.Y. Chung Y.C. Effects of 8-week kettlebell training on body composition, muscle strength, pulmonary function, and chronic low-grade inflammation in elderly women with sarcopenia Exp. Gerontol. 2018 112 112 118 10.1016/j.exger.2018.09.015 30243898 · DOI
  20. [26]Strasser E.M. Hofmann M. Franzke B. Schober-Halper B. Oesen S. Jandrasits W. Graf A. Praschak M. Horvath-Mechtler B. Krammer C. Strength training increases skeletal muscle quality but not muscle mass in old institutionalized adults: A randomized, multi-arm parallel and controlled intervention study Eur. J. Phys. Rehab. Med. 2018 54 921 933 10.23736/S1973-9087.18.04930-4 29517189 · DOI
  21. [30]Stepanikova I. Oates G.R. Bateman L.B. Does one size fit all? The role of body mass index and waist circumference in systemic inflammation in midlife by race and gender Ethn. Health 2017 22 169 183 10.1080/13557858.2016.1235681 27774807 PMC5495111 · DOI
  22. [31]Hubal M.J. Gordish-Dressman H. Thompson P.D. Price T.B. Hoffman E.P. Angelopoulos T.J. Gordon P.M. Moyna N.M. Pescatello L.S. Visich P.S. Variability in muscle size and strength gain after unilateral resistance training Med. Sci. Sport Exerc. 2005 37 964 972 15947721
  23. [32]Roberts H.C. Denison H.J. Martin H.J. Patel H.P. Syddall H. Cooper C. Sayer A.A. A review of the measurement of grip strength in clinical and epidemiological studies: Towards a standardised approach Age Ageing 2011 40 423 429 10.1093/ageing/afr051 21624928 · DOI · Paper page
  24. [33]Zeng P. Wu S. Han Y. Liu J. Zhang Y. Zhang E. Zhang Y. Gong H. Pang J. Tang Z. Differences in body composition and physical functions associated with sarcopenia in Chinese elderly: Reference values and prevalence Arch. Gerontol. Geriatr. 2015 60 118 123 10.1016/j.archger.2014.08.010 25440136 · DOI
  25. [34]Coin A. Sarti S. Ruggiero E. Giannini S. Pedrazzoni M. Minisola S. Rossini M. Del P.A. Inelmen E.M. Manzato E. Prevalence of sarcopenia based on different diagnostic criteria using DEXA and appendicular skeletal muscle mass reference values in an Italian population aged 20 to 80 J. Am. Med. Dir. Assoc. 2013 14 507 512 10.1016/j.jamda.2013.02.010 23582341 · DOI
  26. [35]Liao C.D. Chen H.C. Kuo Y.C. Tsauo J.Y. Huang S.W. Liou T.H. Effects of Muscle Strength Training on Muscle Mass Gain and Hypertrophy in Older Adults with Osteoarthritis: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis Arthrit. Care Res. 2020 72 1703 1718 10.1002/acr.24097 31628720 · DOI
  27. [37]Villareal D.T. Aguirre L. Gurney A.B. Waters D.L. Sinacore D.R. Colombo E. Armamento-Villareal R. Qualls C. Aerobic or Resistance Exercise, or Both, in Dieting Obese Older Adults N. Engl. J. Med. 2017 376 1943 1955 10.1056/NEJMoa1616338 28514618 PMC5552187 · DOI · Paper page
  28. [38]Vikberg S. Sorlen N. Branden L. Johansson J. Nordstrom A. Hult A. Nordstrom P. Effects of Resistance Training on Functional Strength and Muscle Mass in 70-Year-Old Individuals with Pre-sarcopenia: A Randomized Controlled Trial J. Am. Med. Dir. Assoc. 2019 20 28 34 10.1016/j.jamda.2018.09.011 30414822 · DOI · Paper page
  29. [40]Monteiro-Junior R.S. de Tarso Maciel-Pinheiro P. Portugal E.D.M.M. da Silva Figueiredo L.F. Terra R. Carneiro L.S. Rodrigues V.D. Nascimento O.J. Deslandes A.C. Laks J. Effect of Exercise on Inflammatory Profile of Older Persons: Systematic Review and Meta-Analyses J. Phys. Act. Health 2018 15 64 71 10.1123/jpah.2016-0735 28771081 · DOI

Cited by

Sorted by citations

Authors
Zhao, H., Cheng, R., Song, G., Teng, J., Shen, S., Fu, X., Yan, Y., & Liu, C.
Affiliations
  • Jiangnan University (CN)
  • Beijing Sport University (CN)
  • Ningbo University (CN)
Corresponding author
  • Yan, Yi
  • Liu, Chang
ORCID
Venue
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
Publisher
MDPI AG
Published
2022-11-22
Volume
19
Issue
23
Pages
15491
ISSN
1660-4601 (ISSN-L)
DOI
10.3390/ijerph192315491
PMC
PMC9739568
OpenAlex
W4309714391
Cited by
102
References
9
Citations by year
2026: 23 · 2025: 41 · 2024: 22 · 2023: 16
FWCI
2.72
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
Locations
  • International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • RePEc: Research Papers in Economics (submittedVersion)
  • DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion)
Funders
École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne
Topics
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Physiology › Nutrition and Health in Aging
  • Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Molecular Biology › Muscle Physiology and Disorders
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Geriatrics and Gerontology › Frailty in Older Adults
Keywords
resistance training, sarcopenia, elderly patients, muscle strength, muscle quality, skeletal muscle index, grip strength, walking speed, resistance band training, kettlebell training, training prescription, exercise rehabilitation
MeSH terms
Aged, Humans, Muscle, Skeletal, Hand Strength, Muscle Strength, Resistance Training, Sarcopenia

About these checks

Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.

Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.

Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.

What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›

Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review