Calf Circumference as a Useful Predictor of Sarcopenia in Patients With Liver Diseases

Abstract

Background/aim: To elucidate the influence of calf circumference (CC) on sarcopenia in patients with chronic liver damages (CLDs, n=525, 255 men).

Patients and methods: Anthropometry parameters including arm circumference, arm muscle circumference, CC, arm muscle area, triceps skinfold thickness, waist circumference and body mass index were measured. Patients with both grip strength (GS) decline and skeletal muscle index (SMI) decline were diagnosed as sarcopenic.

Results: Liver cirrhosis was identified in 103 cases (40.4%) in males and 87 cases (32.2%) in females. Sarcopenia was identified in 23 male patients (9.0%) and 38 female patients (14.1%). CC had the strong positive correlation with SMI both in male (r=0.79, p<0.0001) and female (r=0.83, p<0.0001). Among the above mentioned 7 anthropometry parameters, CC had the highest area under the receiver operating characteristics curve (AUC) for sarcopenia both in males (AUC=0.88) and females (AUC=0.86).

Conclusion: CC can be helpful for predicting sarcopenia in CLDs.

Keywords: Calf circumference; chronic liver damage; correlation; sarcopenia; screening tool.