Sarcopenia part 2: prevention, treatment and management

Sarcopenia is a syndrome characterized by progressive and generalized loss of skeletal muscle mass and strength with a risk of adverse outcomes such as physical disability, poor quality of life and death.^1,2 This article, the second of two, will examine prevention, treatment and management of sarcopenia.

Prevention of sarcopenia

Although sarcopenia is generally a disease associated with old age it is rooted in adverse muscle changes that accrue across a lifetime.³ The causes of sarcopenia are outlined in figure one. Many of these causes can be modified through a person’s lifetime reducing the risk of sarcopenia or delaying its onset.