Abstract
Objective
To associate clinical parameters of sarcopenia with cognitive impairment in older people.
Method
Cross-sectional study with 263 older adults (≥60 years) treated at a specialized public health facility. Sociodemographic and clinical variables were used to characterize the sample and the clinical parameters of sarcopenia (muscle strength, muscle mass and physical performance) were assessed based on handgrip strength (HGS), calf circumference (CC) and the Timed Up and Go (TUG) test. The Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) was used to evaluate cognitive status. Associations were analyzed by simple and multiple linear and logistic regression considering the clinical parameters of sarcopenia (independent variables) and cognitive status (dependent variable), adjusted for age, sex, years of schooling, number of medications, nutritional status and functional capacity.
Results
Of participants with cognitive impairment, 59.6% exhibited low muscle strength. In simple linear regression, cognitive status was explained by muscle strength in 21.5% of cases, muscle mass in 12.3% and physical performance in 7.6%, with muscle strength and muscle mass as explanatory variables for cognitive status in non-adjusted multiple regression and muscle strength alone for adjusted analyses. Only muscle strength remained significantly associated with cognitive status in adjusted multiple logistic regression (OR=0.846; [95%CI: 0.774 – 0.924] p<0.001).
Conclusion
Low muscle strength was the sarcopenia parameter independently associated with cognitive impairment. This information is useful in highlighting the likelihood of cognitive impairment when poor muscle strength is identified in older people.
Keywords
Aged; Sarcopenia; Cognitive impairment; Functional dependence
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