The Relationship Between Frailty, Pre-frailty, and Multidimensional Skeletal Muscle Assessment in Older Individuals Requiring Support or Care

Abstract

Objective: This study aimed to investigate the skeletal muscle characteristics of frailty and pre-frailty individuals from a multifaceted perspective and elucidate their features.

Methods: Seventy-three users of day-care rehabilitation services were categorized into the frailty and pre-frailty groups using the revised Japanese version of the Cardiovascular Health Study (J-CHS) criteria. The measurement items were skeletal muscle mass index (SMI), phase angle, knee extensor strength, Sit-to-stand-five test (SS-5), thigh muscle thickness, and muscle brightness. Group comparisons were performed using unpaired t-tests. Furthermore, binary logistic regression analysis was performed using frailty status as the dependent variable, and the cutoff value of SS-5 was examined using the receiver operating characteristic curve.

Results: The SMI, SS-5, and thigh muscle brightness had significant differences between both groups. Binary logistic regression analysis identified SS-5 (odds ratio 1.31, 95% confidence interval 1.03—1.47) as a significant variable, with a cutoff value of 14.6 s.

Conclusions: Evaluation of muscle power, such as rising from a chair task, is crucial for frailty and pre-frailty individuals, and the cutoff value of the SS-5, an indicator of muscle power, was elucidated.