Presence of dynapenia and association with anthropometric variables in cancer patients

Abstract

Background Dynapenia is defined as an age-related loss of muscle strength. There is little information on dynapenia in cancer patients and on how it relates to anthropometric variables. The aim of this study was to analyze the presence of dynapenia and its association with anthropometric variables in hospitalized cancer patients. Methods Participants comprised adult and elderly cancer patients evaluated within the first 48 h of hospital admission to a tertiary public hospital, a referral center for gastrointestinal tract surgery. Anthropometric variables were measured according to standardized protocols. Dynapenia was identified based on handgrip strength (HGS), according to the cutoff points defined by the European Working Group on Sarcopenia in Older People (EWGSOP2), with values for women < 16 kg and for men < 27 kg. Statistical analysis was performed using SPSS software, version 22.0, with a significance level of 5%. Results This study included 158 patients aged in average 59.5 ± 14.0 years; of these, 53.6% were elderly, 58.9% non-white and 59.5% had some degree of malnutrition. The most prevalent type of cancer was that of the lower gastrointestinal tract (33.5%). The presence of dynapenia was observed in 23.4% of the patients and cachexia in 36.1%. There was an association between dynapenia with age (p < 0.001), life stage (p = 0.002) and race/color (p = 0.027), and also with body mass index (BMI) (p = 0.001) and adductor pollicis muscle thickness (APMT) of both hands (p < 0.05). After logistic regression analysis, adjusted for the sociodemographic variables, the APMT of the dominant hand and the low weight determined by body mass index remained associated with the occurrence of dynapenia (p < 0.05). Conclusions In this study we confirmed that dynapenia was present in cancer patients, being associated with APMT of the dominant hand and low weight. HSG was proven to be a reliable and complementary measure to be added to the process of assessing nutritional status, contributing to the nutritional diagnosis of these patients and to the detection of early muscle depletion.

Female cancer survivors are more likely to be at high risk of malnutrition and meet the threshold for clinical importance for a number of quality of life subscales

“…One‐fifth of individuals were classified as having dynapenia. This is similar to recent work looking at adult and elderly cancer patients who were admitted to hospital for gastrointestinal surgery where 23.4% were classified as having dynapenia 38 …”

“…This is similar to recent work looking at adult and elderly cancer patients who were admitted to hospital for gastrointestinal surgery where 23.4% were classified as having dynapenia. 38 Overall, 40.9% of this cohort were classified as being at moderate to high risk of malnutrition. This figure is similar to that found in other countries (39% in France 39 ; 31% in Australia 40 ; 45.3% in Brazil 7 ; and 40.2% in the Philippines 41 ), whereas Isenring and Marinos 2 report a range of 30%-70%.…”

Association of Subjective Global Assessment and Adductor pollicis muscle thickness with the Sarcopenia in older patients with type 2 diabetes

“…Similarly, the study by Belanti F. et al (2020) [38], with 152 older hospitalized, those with malnutrition , and in the healthy population [32]. Richinelli et al [25] identified that 158 cancer patients (mean age 54 ± 14 years) and reduced APMT had a higher risk of dynapenia (low muscle strength) (considering surgical patients <13.4 mm as the cutoff point). The APMT association has also been associated with a risk of sarcopenia through SARC-F [45].…”

“…The MUAMC has a good relationship with the muscular depletion of older patients [20], a good association with sarcopenia in institutionalized patients [21], patients with cirrhosis [22], and cancer patients in palliative care [23], in addition to being a predictor for mortality [24]. The measurement of the adductor pollicis muscle (APMT) demonstrates a good association with sarcopenia in cancer patients, as well as a good marker for low muscle strength [25].…”

Adductor pollicis muscle and handgrip strength: potential methods of nutritional assessment in surgical patients

“…Já a capacidade funcional, avaliada pela força de preensão palmar (FPP), está correlacionada com complicações clínicas e é um método sensível para observar depleção nutricional em curto prazo 9 . Por ser uma medida facilmente reprodutível, é mais conveniente do que outras ferramentas de rastreamento de desnutrição e ganhou considerável atenção nos últimos anos 10 .…”