"It's just ageing" is not a diagnosis.
Weakness is a measurable, recognised condition: sarcopenia. Muscle is the body's largest protein reserve and a major site of glucose disposal, so its decline is often the earliest detectable sign of wider decline.
- Muscle decline
- Weakness
- Falls
- Hospitalisation
- Loss of independence
- Mortality
Clinical pearl. Good muscle mass on CT or DXA does not guarantee function. Guidelines combine strength, mass and physical performance, because mass alone cannot reveal function or fall risk.
No accessible, automated tool
No fast way to identify sarcopenia as the cause of weakness, or to track progress.
Hard to explain, hard to prove progress
Hard to explain the cause, target interventions and compare with age-, sex- and ethnicity-matched norms. Patients get generic advice.
Weakness is not inevitable
Unrecognised sarcopenia leads to falls, hospital stays and lost independence.
"It's just ageing" is not a diagnosis.
Weakness is a measurable, recognised condition: sarcopenia. Muscle is the body's largest protein reserve and a major site of glucose disposal, so its decline is often the earliest detectable sign of wider decline.
- Muscle decline
- Weakness
- Falls
- Hospitalisation
- Loss of independence
- Mortality
Clinical pearl. Good muscle mass on CT or DXA does not guarantee function. Guidelines combine strength, mass and physical performance, because mass alone cannot reveal function or fall risk.
No accessible, automated tool
No fast way to identify sarcopenia as the cause of weakness, or to track progress.
Hard to explain, hard to prove progress
Hard to explain the cause, target interventions and compare with age-, sex- and ethnicity-matched norms. Patients get generic advice.
Weakness is not inevitable
Unrecognised sarcopenia leads to falls, hospital stays and lost independence.