Sarcopenia Assessment and Management

As in previous initiatives and publications [25 (link)–35 (link)], the European Society for Clinical and Economic Aspects of Osteoporosis and Osteoarthritis (ESCEO) working group on frailty and sarcopenia consists of clinical scientists and experts in the field of musculoskeletal diseases. Different members of the ESCEO working group were asked to prepare a review of the literature on 1) the general tools for the assessment of sarcopenia, both in research and in clinic (CC); 2) the assessment of physical performance in daily practice (MC); 3) the role of imaging in the diagnosis of sarcopenia in daily practice (MV); 4) the role of biochemical markers in the diagnosis of sarcopenia in daily practice (EC) and 5) the role of primary versus secondary care physicians in the evaluation of sarcopenia (AC). A brief summary of the management of sarcopenia in daily practice was also proposed and discussed. Randomized controlled studies, prospective studies, systematic reviews and meta-analyses published before September 2015 were searched on PubMed and Embase using the following search terms : 1) Sarcopenia, Clinical, Evaluation, Assessment, Management; 2) Physical function, Physical performance, Gait, Walk, Walking, Strength; 3) Elderly, Muscle mass, Sarcopenia, Dual x-ray absorptiometry/DXA/DEXA, Computer tomography/CT, Magnetic resonance imaging/MRI, Bioelectrical impedance/BIA; 4) Frailty, Sarcopenia, Biomarker, Biochemical marker, and 5) Primary care, Specialist care, Secondary care, Sarcopenia, Management, Screening, Questionnaire. Additional studies were identified by a manual search of bibliographic references of relevant articles and existing reviews. Each member prepared a list of the most important papers based on their review of the literature and then made a set of preliminary recommendations. The subsequent step was a face-to-face meeting for the whole group to make amendments and discuss further recommendations. The plan of the manuscript was also discussed and shared conclusions were reached. The views expressed in this article are the personal views of the authors and may not be understood or quoted as being made on behalf of or reflecting the position of the EMA or one of its committees or working parties.