title: Sarcopenia and its relationship with falling among outpatients attending a geriatric and memory clinic at Kyorin University Hospital.
abstract: The aim of the present study was to investigate the prevalence of sarcopenia in outpatients attending a geriatric and memory clinic and to investigate its relationship with falling.
  
  
  
  We investigated the prevalence of sarcopenia (according to the EWGSOP criteria) among 283 outpatients that were all ≥65 years of age, and who attended the geriatric and memory clinic at Kyorin University Hospital. We also examined comorbidities, CGA items, and fall-related measures, and analyzed the relationships between these factors and sarcopenia.
  
  
  
  Seventy men (60.9%) and 88 women (52.4%) were diagnosed with sarcopenia. The sarcopenic men were older, had lower BMI values, and had a higher prevalence of dementia. The sarcopenic women had lower BMI values, and a higher prevalence of dyslipidemia. ASMI was not associated with walking speed or fall-related measures, whereas grip strength and walking speed were associated with each other and both were associated with fall-related measures. Ninety-one patients (32.2%) experienced a fall in the previous year. The prevalence of sarcopenia and ASMI among fallers and non-fallers did not differ to a statistically significant extent, whereas the fallers had lower grip strength and walking speed. A multiple logistic regression analysis revealed that weak grip strength in men and slow walking speed and the presence of diabetes in women were significant risk factors for falling.
  
  
  
  The frequency of sarcopenia in outpatients attending the geriatric and memory clinic was higher than that in the community-dwelling elderly individuals. Falls were more related to the patients' muscle strength and walking speed than their muscle mass or the presence of sarcopenia itself.
authors.affiliation: Department of Geriatric Medicine, Kyorin University of Geriatric Medicine.
authors.forename: Masamichi
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Tanaka
authors.forename: Kumiko
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Nagai
authors.forename: Hitomi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Koshiba
authors.forename: Toshifumi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Matui
authors.forename: Koichi
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kozaki
mesh_terms: D000058:Accidental Falls; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D055948:Sarcopenia / Q000503:physiopathology*