Cachexia and sarcopenia

Q: What is the difference between sarcopenia and cachexia?

Answer:

Cachexia is generally defined as weight loss due to loss of muscle mass. Although it is universally associated with fat loss, it is not required.

Sarcopenia is characterized by loss of muscle mass, strength, and performance. It does not necessarily result in overall weight loss like muscle loss in obesity, known as sarcopenic obesity. By core definition, it is defined as loss of skeletal muscle mass, two standard deviations below sex-specific normal values for young adults. Sarcopenia may occur due to various underlying reasons such as disuse, changing endocrine function, underlying chronic diseases, inflammation, insulin resistance, nutritional deficiencies, and cancer treatment.

#musculoskeletal

References:

1. Baumgartner RN, Koehler KM, Gallagher D, et al. Epidemiology of sarcopenia among the elderly in New Mexico. Am J Epidemiol 1998; 147:755.

2.  Kotler DP. Cachexia. Ann Intern Med. 2000 Oct 17;133(8):622-34. doi: 10.7326/0003-4819-133-8-200010170-00015. PMID: 11033592.

3. Ardeljan AD, Hurezeanu R. Sarcopenia. 2023 Jul 4. In: StatPearls [Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing; 2024 Jan–. PMID: 32809648.