Pathogenetic and Clinical Relationships between Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease, Sarcopenia and Frailty

Abstract

The  impact  of  aging and geriatric syndromes on  chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, a  complex, chronic inflammatory condition, is a subject of significant interest in aging medicine. Understanding the key pathogenic mechanisms that combine the aging process and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease can help rethink therapeutic concepts in patients with the described comorbidity and be considered the basis of new directions for preventive measures.The purpose of the review is to update data from open access scientific sources on the pathogenetic mechanisms and clinical relationships of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, sarcopenia, and frailty.Methods. Foreign and domestic scientific publications on this topic over the past 15 years were analyzed using electronic libraries PubMed/MedLine, Elsevier, elibrary.Conclusion. An  extensive examination  of  current scientific data  was carried out to  determine the pathogenetic connections between chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and the aging process, along with the prominent geriatric conditions of sarcopenia and frailty. A significant amount of information has been accumulated indicating deterioration in the clinical manifestations and prognosis of older patients with a combination of the described pathologies; therefore, the relevance of further study of these comorbidities remains. The cause-and-effect relationship of these clinical manifestations remains not entirely clear: chronic obstructive pulmonary disease leads to  the development of  sarcopenia and frailty, or  these geriatric syndromes only accompany chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, as  a disease that manifests itself most frequently in advanced age. There is significant interest in developing therapeutic strategies to improve the clinical outcomes of older patients with a combination of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, frailty and sarcopenia.