Sarcopenia, sarcopenic overweight/obesity and risk of cardiovascular disease and cardiac arrhythmia: A cross-sectional study.

Summary Background Sarcopenia is an age-dependent skeletal muscle disorder that is common in patients with heart failure. The current study aimed to investigate the associations of sarcopenia with carotid atherosclerosis, cardiovascular disease and cardiac arrhythmia in a middle-aged and elderly population without clinical heart failure. Methods A total of 2432 participants (992 men and 1440 women) from Shanghai Changfeng Study were included for analysis. The degree of sarcopenia was measured using height-adjusted appendicular skeletal muscle mass (ASM/height2). Carotid plaques were detected by carotid artery ultrasonography, and myocardial ischemia, infarction and cardiac arrhythmia were diagnosed based on electrocardiogram, past history and clinical manifestations. Results Sarcopenia was associated with higher prevalence of carotid atherosclerosis (26.4% vs 20.4%, P=0.027), myocardial infarction (4.0% vs 1.1%, P=0.001), and premature ventricular contraction (4.0% vs 2.0%, P=0.034) in the participants with normal body weight, and higher prevalence of carotid atherosclerosis (45.0% vs 31.2%, P=0.016), myocardial infarction (10.0% vs 4.3%, P=0.020) and atrial fibrillation (7.5% vs 1.3%, P Conclusion Sarcopenia is associated with myocardial infarction and atrial fibrillation in middle-aged and elderly adults without clinical heart failure.