Association between serum glycated albumin and the risk of sarcopenia and dynapenia in a community-dwelling older Japanese population: the Hisayama Study.

Background: Sarcopenia, characterized by a progressive decline in skeletal muscle mass and strength, is increasingly recognized as a major public health concern. Several epidemiological studies have reported that diabetes mellitus is associated with the risk of sarcopenia. The aim of this study is to investigate the association between serum glycated albumin (GA) levels and the risk of developing sarcopenia and dynapenia in a community-dwelling older Japanese population.

Methods: A total of 905 participants aged ≥65 years without sarcopenia at baseline were followed for 5 years. Serum GA levels were categorized into quartiles. Sarcopenia was defined by the Asian Working Group for Sarcopenia 2019 criteria, and dynapenia was defined as low grip strength or low gait speed. The odds ratios (ORs) of developing sarcopenia and dynapenia and the mean values of percent change of muscle indices with 95 % confidential intervals (CIs) were estimated by logistic regression analysis and analysis of covariance, respectively.

Results: During the follow-up, 73 participants developed sarcopenia. Higher serum GA levels were significantly associated with greater risks of developing sarcopenia (OR 2.65, 95 %CI 0.95-2.65 in the highest vs. the lowest quartile) and dynapenia (OR 4.15, 95 %CI 2.13-4.15). Higher serum GA levels were related to declines in grip strength and gait speed. This association remained significant even among participants without diabetes or with hemoglobin A1c of <6.0 %.

Conclusions: Higher serum GA is a significant risk factor for both sarcopenia and dynapenia, with a stronger association observed for dynapenia, even in the absence of diabetes.