Prevalence of Sarcopenia Among Ambulatory Elderly Egyptian Patients with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus

Abstract Background: Sarcopenia is a well known geriatric syn-drome but few studies address its prevalence among elderly with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). The etiology of sarco-penia is multi-factorial including related changes in the musculoskeletal, cellular and tissue structure and function. Skeletal muscles are involved in glucose metabolism and its impairment leads to insulin resistance. In the same context decrease in the skeletal muscle mass is the main contributor to sarcopenia. Therefore both diabetes and sarcopenia are related. Sarcopenia and diabetes both may lead to disability and premature mortality. Aim of Study: This study aimed to determine the prevalence of sarcopenia among the elderly Egyptian patients with T2DM. Patients and Methods: This study was conducted on 86 adults with T2DM aged 60 years. Socio-demographical data was collected, geriatrics assessment were done, glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) and lipid profile were done for the studied cases. Sarcopenia was defined using the European Working Group for Sarcopenia in Older People (EWGSOP) criteria [1]. Results: The proportion of elderly with T2DM with sar-copenia was 24.4%. Male sex and BMI showed statistically significant correlation with sarcopenia (p-value=0.005 and p -value=0.046 respectively). HbA1C, lipid profile, TSH level were not significantly associated with sarcopenia. Statistically insignificant correlations were obtained between diabetes treatment, diabetes complications, associated co-morbidities and sarcopenia (p-value=0.378, p-value=0.716 and p-value= 0.907) respectively. In addition, no statistically significant correlation was found between the different treatment modal-ities (oral antidiabetic drugs (OAD), insulin or both) and sarcopenia in our study. Conclusion: The current study showed that the prevalence of sarcopenia among ambulatory Egyptian geriatric population aging 60 years and more was 24.4%. Male sex and BMI showed significant association with sarcopenia. HbA1C, lipid profile, TSH level was not significantly associated with sarcopenia. Different diabetes complications and different treatment modalities for diabetes showed no statistically significant association with sarcopenia.