Sarcopenia Prevalence among Hospitalized Patients with Severe Obesity: An Observational Study
Open accessAbstract
Background: Sarcopenic obesity (SO) is the combination of excess fat, skeletal muscle and muscular strength/function deficit. The ESPEN/EASO have proposed new diagnostic criteria, but the SO prevalence in patients with severe obesity remains to be established. The aim of this study was to establish the SO prevalence in a large cohort of inpatients with obesity, considering sex, age, BMI, type, and number of concomitant diseases. Methods: Patient data of both genders aged between 18 and 90 years with a body mass index (BMI) of ≥30 kg/m2 underwent hospital evaluation including bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) and handgrip strength (HS). QoL scores were obtained by the Psychological General Well-Being Index questionnaire. The study was approved by the institutional Ethic Committee. Results: Among the 3858 patients, 444 (11.51%) exhibited a strength deficit, while 3847 (99.71%) had skeletal muscle mass deficit. The prevalence of SO was then 11.48%, with higher rates in women (12.39%), in individuals aged >70 years (27%), and in those reporting a ‘poor’ QoL (12.6%). No significant difference in SO prevalence was found when stratifying by BMI (30–40 kg/m2 vs. >40 kg/m2, p = 0.1710). In SO patients, osteoarticular diseases (57%), hypertension/heart failure (38%), type 2 diabetes mellitus (34%), and obstructive sleep apnea (32%) were the more frequent comorbidities. Conclusions: The application of ESPEN/EASO-SO criteria in a cohort of inpatients with severe obesity revealed 11.48% SO prevalence, which was associated with age (particularly > 70 years), gender (women), but not BMI, as determinants. Disease staging and QoL screening may improve the identification of SO high-risk patients.
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Sarcopenic obesity (SO) is a clinical condition defined by the coexistence of high body fat mass and low muscle function and mass, and it increases the risk of adverse health outcomes, including disability and mortality.
“Sarcopenic obesity (SO) is a clinical condition defined by the coexistence of high body fat mass and low muscle function and mass, which increases the risk of adverse health outcomes, including disability and mortality.”
From Sarcopenic Obesity Phenotype Index (SOP <i>i</i> ): A Population‐Based Study (2025) · cites this paper as [5]
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- Authors
- Cancello, R., Brenna, E., Soranna, D., Zambon, A., Villa, V., Castelnuovo, G., Donini, L. M., Busetto, L., Capodaglio, P., & Brunani, A.
- Affiliations
- IRCCS Istituto Auxologico Italiano (IT)
- Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore (IT)
- Sapienza University of Rome (IT)
- University of Padua (IT)
- Corresponding author
- Brunani, Amelia
- ORCID
- Venue
- Journal of Clinical Medicine
- Publisher
- MDPI AG
- Published
- 2024-05-13
- Volume
- 13
- Issue
- 10
- Pages
- 2880
- ISSN
- 2077-0383 (ISSN-L)
- PMC
- PMC11122386
- OpenAlex
- W4396896023
- Cited by
- 14
- References
- 40
- Citations by year
- 2026: 5 · 2025: 5 · 2024: 4
- FWCI
- 3.96
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- gold
- doi.org
- Licence
- Locations
- Journal of Clinical Medicine (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Padua Research Archive (University of Padova) (submittedVersion, cc-by)
- BOA (University of Milano-Bicocca) (submittedVersion, other-oa)
- IRIS Research product catalog (Sapienza University of Rome) (submittedVersion)
- PubliCatt (Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore) (submittedVersion, other-oa)
- Funders
- Italian Ministry of Health—Ricerca corrente
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Physiology › Nutrition and Health in Aging
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Physiology › Body Composition Measurement Techniques
- Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Molecular Biology › Muscle Physiology and Disorders
- Keywords
- sarcopenic obesity, morbid obesity, prevalence, hospitalized patients, grip strength, quality of life, comorbidities, sex differences, aging, body mass index
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