Sarcopenia in neurodegenerative disorders

Abstract

Sarcopenia is a progressive generalized muscle disorder, associated with an increased risk of falls, fractures, physical disability, and mortality. Sarcopenia criteria are based on an assessment of a triad of symptoms – a decrease in muscle mass, muscle strength, and impaired physical performance. The most common diagnostic methods are handgrip dynamometry, densitometry, bioimpedansometry, and gait speed measurement. These methods have high accuracy and prognostic value, but are not always applicable to neurological patients. The article discusses sarcopenia detection in neurological practice, as well as its connection with neurodegenerative disorders – Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Having a number of common pathophysiological mechanisms, each of the diseases is characterized by a specific phenotype of muscle atrophy. The high incidence of sarcopenia symptoms in neurodegenerative diseases and the common mechanisms of their development allow us to treat sarcopenia as an overlap syndrome of neurodegenerative disorders.