Effects of exercise on muscle mass, strength, and physical performance in older adults with sarcopenia: A systematic review and meta-analysis according to the EWGSOP criteria

Abstract

Background: In 2018, the European Working Group on Sarcopenia in Older People (EWGSOP) updated the definition and the diagnosis criteria of sarcopenia. Previous systematic reviews have shown the effect of exercise on sarcopenia including people with different sarcopenia diagnostic criteria.

Objective: This systematic review and meta-analysis aims to summarise and synthesise the evidence about the effect of exercise on muscle mass, strength and physical performance in older adults with sarcopenia according to the EWGSOP criteria.

Methods: Major electronic databases were searched for articles published until September 2020. Randomised controlled trials (RCTs) and non-randomised interventional studies examining the effect of exercise on muscle mass, strength or physical performance in adults older than 60 years with sarcopenia according to the EWGSOP criteria were included.

Results: Four RCTs and three non-randomised interventional studies with a total of 235 patients with sarcopenia were included. Five of the seven included studies reported a low risk of bias. Exercise showed a large effect on physical performance (d = 1.21, 95%CI [0.79 to 1.62]; P < 0.001), a medium effect on muscle strength (d = 0.51, 95%CI [0.25 to 0.76]; P < 0.001), and no effect on muscle mass (d = 0.27, 95%CI [-0.05 to 0.58]; P = 0.10).

Conclusion: The present systematic review showed an effect of exercise on physical performance and muscle strength but an inconsistent effect on muscle mass. The grading of recommendations assessment, development and evaluation criteria showed a low level of evidence in muscle mass, a low or moderate level of evidence in muscle strength and a high level of evidence in physical performance.

Keywords: Exercise; Muscle mass; Physical performance; Sarcopenia; Strength.