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Association between sarcopenia and atherosclerosis in elderly patients with ischemic heart disease

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Abstract

Compared to the general population, elderly patients with cardiovascular disease have a higher prevalence of sarcopenia, and it shows an association with increased mortality risk. Although several studies have indicated that atherosclerosis may cause sarcopenia in community dwelling elderly subjects, the association between sarcopenia and atherosclerosis is not clear in patients with ischemic heart disease (IHD). The present study was performed to examine the association between muscle function and atherosclerosis in elderly patients with IHD. We reviewed the findings of 321 consecutive patients ≥ 65 years old with IHD. Three measures of muscle function were examined, i.e., gait speed, quadriceps isometric strength, and handgrip strength, just before hospital discharge. In addition, we measured intima-media thickness (IMT) as a parameter of arteriosclerosis. To investigate the association between sarcopenia and atherosclerosis, patients were divided into Group H (high), Group M (middle), and Group L (low) according to the tertiles of muscle function, and IMT was compared between the three groups. In addition, we considered the association between IMT thickening and muscle function. The mean age of the study population was 74.1 ± 6.0 years and 73.2% of the patients were men. IMT was compared between groups stratified according to gait speed and quadriceps isometric strength, and the results indicated that IMT was significantly lower in Group H than in Groups L and M (p < 0.05). In addition, gait speed and quadriceps isometric strength were associated with IMT thickening (p < 0.05). Parameters reflecting muscle function of the lower limbs are associated with atherosclerosis in patients with IHD.

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Abbreviations

ANCOVA:

Analysis of covariance

AP:

Angina pectoris

AUC:

Area under the curve

BMI:

Body mass index

CABG:

Coronary aortic bypass graft

CCA:

Common carotid artery

CK:

Creatine kinase

CVD:

Cardiovascular disease

IHD:

Ischemic heart disease

IMT:

Intima-media thickness

LVEF:

Left ventricular ejection fraction

MI:

Myocardial infarction

PCI:

Percutaneous intracoronary intervention

PWV:

Pulse wave velocity

ROC:

Receiver operating characteristic

SD:

Standard deviation

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by a Grant for Clinical and Epidemiologic Research of the Joint Project of Japan Heart Foundation and the Japanese Society of Cardiovascular Disease Prevention Sponsored by AstraZeneca.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Rehabilitation Sciences, Kitasato University Graduate School of Medical Sciences, Sagamihara, Japan

    Shota Uchida, Yuta Suzuki, Takeshi Nakamura, Masashi Yamashita & Atsuhiko Matsunaga

  2. Department of Rehabilitation, Kitasato University School of Allied Health Sciences, 1-15-1 Kitasato, Minami-ku, Sagamihara, Kanagawa, 252-0373, Japan

    Kentaro Kamiya, Minako Yamaoka-Tojo & Atsuhiko Matsunaga

  3. Department of Rehabilitation, Kitasato University Hospital, Sagamihara, Japan

    Nobuaki Hamazaki, Kohei Nozaki, Takafumi Ichikawa & Hidenori Kariya

  4. Department of Physical Therapy, School of Rehabilitation, Hyogo University of Health Sciences, Kobe, Japan

    Ryota Matsuzawa

  5. Department of Cardiovascular Medicine, Kitasato University School of Medicine, Sagamihara, Japan

    Emi Maekawa & Junya Ako

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  1. Shota Uchida
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Contributions

SU, KK and YS interpreted the data and wrote the paper; EM designed the study; NH, RM, KN, TI, TN and MY collected and analyzed data; MY-T provided statistical support and conceptual advice; and AM and JA drafted and critically revised the manuscript for important intellectual content.

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Correspondence to Kentaro Kamiya.

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Uchida, S., Kamiya, K., Hamazaki, N. et al. Association between sarcopenia and atherosclerosis in elderly patients with ischemic heart disease. Heart Vessels 35, 769–775 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00380-020-01554-8

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