Tokyo Metropolitan Geriatric Hospital and Institute of Gerontology, 35-2 Sakae-cho, Itabashi-Ku, Tokyo, 173-0015, Japan.
Department of Public Health, Toho University School of Medicine, 5-21-16 Omorinishi, Ota-ku, Tokyo, 143-8540, Japan.
Aging Clin Exp Res. 2018 Apr;30(4):283-291. doi: 10.1007/s40520-017-0781-0. Epub 2017 Jun 2.
Muscle thickness and echo intensity measured using ultrasound imaging represent both increased muscle volume and connective tissue accumulation. In combination, these ultrasound measurements can be utilized for assessing sarcopenia in community-dwelling older adults.
This study aimed to determine whether morphological and qualitative characteristics classified by quadriceps muscle thickness and echo intensity measured using ultrasound are associated with muscle strength, physical function, and sarcopenia in community-dwelling older adults.
Quadriceps muscle thickness and echo intensity were measured using ultrasound imaging in 1239 community-dwelling older adults. Latent class analyses were conducted to classify participants based on similarity in the subcutaneous fat thickness (FT), quadriceps muscle thickness (MT), subcutaneous fat echo intensity (FEI), and muscle echo intensity (MEI), which were assessed using ultrasound imaging.
Morphological and qualitative characteristics were classified into four types as follows: (A) normal, (B) sarcopenic obesity, (C) obesity, and (D) sarcopenia type. Knee extension strength was significantly greater in A than in B and D. FT and percent body fat were greater in C than in the other types. The correlation between the ultrasound measures and knee extension strength differed among the classification types. The classification types were significantly associated with sarcopenia prevalence.
Classification of the morphological and qualitative characteristics obtained from ultrasound imaging may be useful for assessing sarcopenia in community-dwelling older adults.
超声成像测量的肌肉厚度和回声强度既代表肌肉体积的增加，也代表结缔组织的积累。这些超声测量结果结合使用，可用于评估社区居住的老年人的肌肉减少症。
本研究旨在确定通过超声测量的股四头肌厚度和回声强度分类的形态和定性特征是否与社区居住的老年人的肌肉力量、身体功能和肌肉减少症相关。
使用超声成像对 1239 名社区居住的老年人进行股四头肌厚度和回声强度测量。采用潜在类别分析，根据皮下脂肪厚度（FT）、股四头肌厚度（MT）、皮下脂肪回声强度（FEI）和肌肉回声强度（MEI）的相似性对参与者进行分类评估。
形态和定性特征分为以下四种类型：（A）正常，（B）肌肉减少性肥胖，（C）肥胖，和（D）肌肉减少症型。与 B 和 D 相比，A 型的膝关节伸展力量明显更大。C 型的 FT 和体脂百分比大于其他类型。超声测量与膝关节伸展力量之间的相关性在分类类型之间存在差异。分类类型与肌肉减少症的患病率显著相关。
超声成像获得的形态和定性特征的分类可能有助于评估社区居住的老年人的肌肉减少症。
