Department of Clinical Medicine and Surgery, Federico II University, Via Sergio Pansini 5, 80131 Naples, Italy.
Nutrients. 2021 Jan 9;13(1):183. doi: 10.3390/nu13010183.
Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) represents a major health burden for the elderly population, affecting approximately 25% of people over the age of 65 years. This percentage is expected to increase dramatically in the next decades in relation to the increased longevity of the population observed in recent years. Beyond microvascular and macrovascular complications, sarcopenia has been described as a new diabetes complication in the elderly population. Increasing attention has been paid by researchers and clinicians to this age-related condition-characterized by loss of skeletal muscle mass together with the loss of muscle power and function-in individuals with T2DM; this is due to the heavy impact that sarcopenia may have on physical and psychosocial health of diabetic patients, thus affecting their quality of life. The aim of this narrative review is to provide an update on: (1) the risk of sarcopenia in individuals with T2DM, and (2) its association with relevant features of patients with T2DM such as age, gender, body mass index, disease duration, glycemic control, presence of microvascular or macrovascular complications, nutritional status, and glucose-lowering drugs. From a clinical point of view, it is necessary to improve the ability of physicians and dietitians to recognize early sarcopenia and its risk factors in patients with T2DM in order to make appropriate therapeutic approaches able to prevent and treat this condition.
2 型糖尿病（T2DM）给老年人群带来了巨大的健康负担，大约 25%的 65 岁以上人群受到影响。近年来，由于人口预期寿命的延长，这一比例在未来几十年预计将大幅上升。除了微血管和大血管并发症外，肌少症已被描述为老年人群中一种新的糖尿病并发症。研究人员和临床医生越来越关注这种与年龄相关的疾病状况——其特征是骨骼肌质量丧失，同时伴有肌肉力量和功能丧失——在 2 型糖尿病患者中；这是因为肌少症可能对糖尿病患者的身体和心理健康产生重大影响，从而影响他们的生活质量。本叙述性综述的目的是提供以下方面的最新信息：（1）T2DM 患者发生肌少症的风险，以及（2）其与 T2DM 患者相关特征的关系，如年龄、性别、体重指数、疾病持续时间、血糖控制、微血管或大血管并发症、营养状况和降糖药物。从临床角度来看，有必要提高医生和营养师识别 T2DM 患者早期肌少症及其危险因素的能力，以便采取适当的治疗方法来预防和治疗这种疾病。
