Sarcopenia is associated with non-motor symptoms in Han Chinese patients with Parkinson's Disease: a cross-sectional study

Qiu-Wan Liu; Cheng-Jie Mao; Zhao-Hui Lu; Rong-Fang Shi; Ying-Chun Zhang; Ping Zhao; Chun-Feng Liu

doi:10.1186/s12877-023-04188-3

Sarcopenia is associated with non-motor symptoms in Han Chinese patients with Parkinson's Disease: a cross-sectional study

BMC Geriatr. 2023 Aug 16;23(1):494. doi: 10.1186/s12877-023-04188-3.

Authors

Qiu-Wan Liu^{1

2}, Cheng-Jie Mao³, Zhao-Hui Lu¹, Rong-Fang Shi¹, Ying-Chun Zhang¹, Ping Zhao¹, Chun-Feng Liu^{4

5}

Affiliations

¹ Department of Neurology and Clinical Research Center of Neurological Disease, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou, 215004, China.
² Department of Neurology, The Second People's Hospital of Hefei, Hefei Hospital Affiliated to Anhui Medical University, Hefei, Anhui, 230011, China.
³ Department of Neurology and Clinical Research Center of Neurological Disease, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou, 215004, China. drchengjiemao@163.com.
⁴ Department of Neurology and Clinical Research Center of Neurological Disease, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou, 215004, China. liuchunfeng@suda.edu.cn.
⁵ Institute of Neuroscience, Soochow University, Suzhou, 215004, China. liuchunfeng@suda.edu.cn.

Abstract

Background: Sarcopenia is commonly seen in the older adults and increases in incidence with age, also in Parkinson's disease (PD). Although research has indicated that the development of sarcopenia in patients with PD may be related to both motor symptoms and non-motor symptoms (NMS), the precise relationship between the two conditions remains unclear. Therefore, we aimed to investigate the incidence of sarcopenia in patients with PD and its association with NMS.

Methods: The study included 123 patients with PD and 38 age- and sex-matched healthy controls (HC). All participants were evaluated for sarcopenia using the 2019 Asian Sarcopenia Diagnostic Criteria, and patients with PD underwent standard assessments of motor symptoms and NMS. Multiple logistic regression and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analyses were used to examine the association between sarcopenia and NMS in patients with PD.

Results: The incidence of sarcopenia was significantly higher in patients with PD than in HC (26.8% vs. 10.4%, p = 0.046). Multiple logistic regression analysis revealed that poorer sleep quality (odds ratio [OR]: 1.245; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.011-1.533; p = 0.040) and fatigue (OR: 1.085, 95% CI: 1.006-1.170, p = 0.034) were independently associated with sarcopenia. ROC analysis indicated that the optimal cut-off value for Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) scores was 10, with 72.7% sensitivity and 74.4% specificity (area under the curve [AUC] = 0.776, 95% CI: 0.683-0.868, p < 0.001). The optimal cut-off value for Fatigue Severity Scale (FSS) scores was 39, with 87% sensitivity and 50% specificity (AUC = 0.725, 95% CI: 0.629 -0.820, p < 0.001). Joint use of FSS and PSQI scores increased the predictive value for sarcopenia(AUC = 0.804, 95% CI: 0.724-0.885, p < 0.001).

Conclusion: Patients with PD are more susceptible to sarcopenia than healthy older adults, and fatigue and poorer sleep are positively associated with sarcopenia. Further longitudinal studies are needed to clarify the causal relationships.

Keywords: Fatigue; Non-motor symptoms; Older adults; Parkinson’s disease; Sarcopenia; Sleep quality.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Aged
Cross-Sectional Studies
East Asian People
Fatigue
Humans
Parkinson Disease* / complications
Parkinson Disease* / diagnosis
Parkinson Disease* / epidemiology
Sarcopenia* / diagnosis
Sarcopenia* / epidemiology