The assessment of sarcopenia using magnetic resonance imaging

mental decline, increased risk for falls, fractures and hospitalization. Even though recognizing sarcopenia can be done through a special questionnaire filling in and clinical test performance, imaging plays a determinant role in sarcopenia’s diagnosis confirmation by estimating the muscle quality and quantity. There are various imaging methods that can be used for this purpose, such us ultrasonography, dual energy-ray absorptiometry, computed tomography and Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) 5 . The aim of this review is to present the applications of MRI in sarcopenia assessment, by giving prominence to the advantages of this imaging modality, the specific MRI-derived surrogate parameters/biomarkers of sarcopenia and the MRI techniques serving that scope. Abstract Sarcopenia is a quantitative and qualitative muscle disorder with multifactorial pathogenesis intertwining with aging. The negative consequences on everyday life and functional ability are significant and have as final result the reduction of overall survival. Various and advanced magnetic resonance imaging techniques make prompt detection and disease characterization feasible, thus contribute to the modification of coexistent diseases prognosis.