title: Prevalence of sarcopenia in a media and long stay Unit.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Sarcopenia is characterized by the loss of skeletal muscle mass and strength and represents a risk factor for frailty, loss of independence and physical disabilities. This study aimed to assess the prevalence of sarcopenia in a population of patients admitted to a media and long-stay unit.
  
  
  METHODS
  Descriptive, cross-sectional observational study that included 166 patients over 18 years who were admitted consecutively for a year to palliative care, convalescence or rehabilitation. Administrative and anthropometric data were recorded. Sarcopenia detection was performed by assessing the strength in the scapular and pelvic girdle muscles, grip strength in the hands, muscle mass and physical functional capacity.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The overall prevalence of sarcopenia was 77.6%. Most patients had severe sarcopenia (91.2%), with reduced levels of the 3 assessed parameters: muscle strength (88.2%), muscle mass (85.5%) and physical performance (94.70%).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The prevalence of sarcopenia in patients admitted to our media and long-stay unit is higher than that reported in noninstitutionalized populations, and often has a significant degree of severity.
authors.affiliation: Servicio de Medicina Física y Rehabilitación, Hospital Universitario y Politécnico La Fe, Valencia, España. Electronic address: ceciliarubiomaicas@hotmail.com.
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Rubio-Maicas
authors.affiliation: Servicio de Medicina Física y Rehabilitación, Hospital Universitario y Politécnico La Fe, Valencia, España.
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Duarte-Alfonso
authors.affiliation: Servicio de Medicina Física y Rehabilitación, Hospital Universitario y Politécnico La Fe, Valencia, España.
authors.forename: M R
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: Beseler-Soto
authors.affiliation: Unidad de media y larga estancia, Servicio de Medicina Interna, Hospital Universitario y Politécnico La Fe, Valencia, España.
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Moreno-Muñoz
authors.affiliation: Unidad de media y larga estancia, Servicio de Medicina Interna, Hospital Universitario y Politécnico La Fe, Valencia, España.
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Moral-Moral
authors.affiliation: Servicio de Endocrinología y Nutrición, Hospital Universitario y Politécnico La Fe, Valencia, España.
authors.forename: J F
authors.initials: JF
authors.lastname: Merino-Torres
keywords: Fuerza muscular; Muscle mass; Prevalence; Prevalencia; Sarcopenia