• Weida Qiu, Anping Cai, Liwen Li, and Yingqing Feng.
• Department of Cardiology, Hypertension Research Laboratory, Guangdong Cardiovascular Institute, Guangdong Provincial People's Hospital, Guangdong Academy of Medical Sciences, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China.
• J. Intern. Med. 2024 Aug 1; 296 (2): 156167156-167.

AimsTo estimate the contemporary trend in the prevalence of sarcopenia and evaluate its risk factors and the longitudinal associations with multiple chronic conditions and mortality among Chinese middle-aged and older adults.MethodsThis was a nationwide, prospective cohort study using data from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study. The definition of sarcopenia was based on the Asian Working Group for Sarcopenia 2019 algorithm. In the cross-sectional analysis, we estimated the trend in the weighted prevalence of sarcopenia from 2011 to 2015 and examined the associated risk factors for sarcopenia severity in 2011. In the longitudinal analysis, we assessed the longitudinal associations between sarcopenia and 14 chronic conditions and mortality during a 9-year follow-up.ResultsThe weighted prevalence of sarcopenia remained consistently high in the overall population from 2011 (15.9%, 95% confidence intervals [CI]: 15.1, 16.6) to 2015 (15.0%, 95% CI: 14.3, 15.6; p for trend = 0.075). A range of risk factors were independently associated with the severity of sarcopenia, including older age, female sex, lower socioeconomic status, smoking status, malnutrition, and several chronic conditions. Possible sarcopenic and sarcopenic individuals had higher odds of several chronic conditions (i.e., heart disease, chronic lung disease, and memory-related disease) and increased risks of mortality (possible sarcopenia: odds ratios (OR): 1.66, 95% CI: 1.37, 2.00; sarcopenia: OR: 1.69, 95% CI: 1.36, 2.11) in 9 years of follow-up.ConclusionsThe prevalence of sarcopenia remained consistently high in the investigated population. Various risk factors were significantly associated with a higher prevalence of sarcopenia. Sarcopenic individuals had higher odds of several chronic conditions and increased risks of mortality, highlighting that the urgent need for dedicated efforts to improve the management of sarcopenic patients.© 2024 The Association for the Publication of the Journal of Internal Medicine.

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