Prevalence of obesity and diabetes in older people with sarcopenia defined according to EWGSOP2 and FNHI criteria

Background: Although the prevalence of sarcopenic obesity is increasing, nowadays a universally accepted definition still does not exist. Because, this clinical entity is defined as the combination of obesity and sarcopenia, the diagnosis appears to be strictly linked to criteria used for sarcopenia and the available prevalence data are not uniform. To investigate the prevalence of sarcopenic obesity in older persons according to EWGSOP2 and FNIH criteria. Second, to evaluate the prevalence of diabetes in patients with sarcopenia diagnosed by the two definitions. Methods: Observational multicenter study performed in 2014 on older patients admitted to 12 Italian hospitals (GLISTEN Study). Data were collected through standardized questionnaires, which assessed: socio-demographic data, cognitive status, functional abilities, pharmacological therapy, comorbidities, and blood tests. Moreover, muscle mass and strength and physical performance were evaluated. Results: Six hundred and ten were included in the analyses. Among sarcopenic patients, the prevalence of sarcopenic obesity was 30.8% with FNIH and 0% with EWGSOP2 criteria. According to EWGSOP2 criteria, 23.7% of sarcopenic and 30.8% of non-sarcopenic patients were affected by diabetes (p = 0.101); otherwise, using FNIH criteria, 36.3% of sarcopenic and 26.9% of non-sarcopenic patients were diabetic (p = 0.030). After adjustment for potential confounders, diabetic patients had a 73% higher probability of being sarcopenic according to FNIH criteria (OR 1.73; 95% CI 1.13–2.64). Conclusions: The EWGSOP2 and FNIH sarcopenia criteria are differently related to the prevalence of obesity and diabetes. The EWGSOP2 criteria seem to be not suitable to identify people with sarcopenic obesity.