Abstract
Background: Sarcopenia is a geriatric syndrome characterized by progressive loss of muscle mass, function and quality and associated with a range of adverse health outcomes including disability. Despite a negative correlation between muscle mass and follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) levels in postmenopausal women, it is unclear if FSH is associated with sarcopenia and its poor outcomes, especially in older men.Methods: We used cross-sectional data from 360 men aged over 80 who participated in health check-ups to investigate correlations between serum FSH and sarcopenia, individual sarcopenia components, low physical performance (gait speed ≤ 0.8 m/s) and instrumental activities of daily living (IADL) disability. Sarcopenia and severe sarcopenia were diagnosed according to the revised definition of the European Working Group on Sarcopenia in Old People (EWGSOP2).Results: The prevalence of sarcopenia was 17.8% in this population. In binary logistic regression analysis, compared with higher FSH group, lower FSH group showed a significant reduction in the risk of low calf circumference (a surrogate for muscle mass; OR 0.308, 95% CI 0.109–0.868, P = 0.026) after adjusting potential confounders including age, waist circumference, education, exercise, associated biochemical parameters, other sex hormones and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein. The correlation between FSH and low handgrip strength was marginally significant (OR 0.390, 95% CI 0.151–1.005, P = 0.051). No associations were observed between FSH and sarcopenia, severe sarcopenia, and disability in adjusted models.Conclusion: In older men, circulating FSH was not associated with sarcopenia, sarcopenia severity, the majority of its components and adverse health outcome (IADL disability), with the exception of low calf circumference. Further work is needed to better elucidate the association of FSH and low muscle quantity by adopting more accurate measurement method of appendicular skeletal muscle mass such as DXA, CT or MRI.
Highlights
Sarcopenia has been defined as a geriatric syndrome characterized by progressive loss of muscle mass, muscle strength and physical performance that is associated with a range of adverse health outcomes including frailty, disability, falls and mortality [1]
Poorer nutritional status indicated as lower TG, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), albumin and waist circumference was detected in sarcopenic participants compared to non-sarcopenic ones
After adjusting for potential variables involved in sarcopenia, we found that higher follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) concentrations may correlate with reduced skeletal muscle mass indicated as low calf circumference, but not sarcopenia, sarcopenia severity, low muscle strength and instrumental activities of daily living (IADL) disability
Summary
Sarcopenia has been defined as a geriatric syndrome characterized by progressive loss of muscle mass, muscle strength and physical performance that is associated with a range of adverse health outcomes including frailty, disability, falls and mortality [1]. Observations from Park et al that a reduction in appendicular lean mass across menopausal stages was associated with higher FSH levels supplied further evidence for the potential unfavorable effect of FSH on skeletal mass loss [16]. These studies were all conducted in postmenopausal or perimenopausal women as rapid elevation of FSH level during perimenopausal transition and remain high after menopause. Despite a negative correlation between muscle mass and follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) levels in postmenopausal women, it is unclear if FSH is associated with sarcopenia and its poor outcomes, especially in older men
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