Sarcopenia and its association with changes in socioeconomic, behavioral, and health factors: the EpiFloripa Elderly Study

Abstract: This study aimed to verify the prevalence of sarcopenia and its association with changes in socioeconomic, behavioral, and health factors in the elderly. The longitudinal population-based study included 598 elderly (≥ 60 years) in Florianópolis, Santa Catarina State, in the South of Brazil. Sarcopenia was defined on the basis of appendicular skeletal mass index (ASMI) according to gender (ASMI < 7.26kg/m² for men and < 5.5kg/m² for women). We assessed changes that occurred between the two study waves (2009/2010 and 2013/2014) in relation to socioeconomic, behavioral, and health factors. Crude and adjusted logistic regression analyses were performed. Prevalence of sarcopenia was 17% in women (95%CI: 12.4-22.9) and 28.8% in men (95%CI: 21.3-37.7). In the final model, women that continued to consume or that started consuming alcohol (OR = 0.31; 95%CI: 0.11-0.91) showed lower odds of sarcopenia. Women who continued to smoke or that started smoking (OR = 2.55; 95%CI: 1.16-5.58) and/or that remained inactive or became insufficiently active (OR = 2.90; 95%CI: 1.44-5.84) showed higher odds of sarcopenia. For men, no change variable was associated with sarcopenia. The results suggest that continuing or starting to smoke and remaining or becoming physically inactive are preventable and modifiable risk factors for sarcopenia.