Abstract
The purpose of this study was to examine the relationships between dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA)-determined appendicular lean mass (aLM) and ultrasound-measured thigh muscle thickness (MTH) ratio and between aLM or thigh MTH ratio and zigzag walking performance. Eighty-one middle-aged and older adults (41 men and 40 women) aged 50 to 74 years volunteered for the study. Approximately two thirds of the subjects (34 men and 17 women) carried out regular sports activity (at least >2 times a week) including running and cycling exercise. MTH was measured using B-mode ultrasound at two sites on the anterior (A50) and posterior (P50) aspects of the mid-thigh. A50:P50 MTH ratio was calculated to evaluate site-specific thigh muscle loss. aLM and percent body fat were also determined using a DXA. Men had lower body fat and higher aLM than women. Anterior and posterior thigh MTH as well as A50:P50 MTH ratio was higher in men than in women. Zigzag walking time was faster in men than in women. Anterior and posterior thigh MTH was positively (p < 0.001) correlated to aLM and aLM index in men and women. However, A50:P50 MTH ratio was not significantly correlated with aLM and aLM index in both sexes. There was no significant correlation between aLM index and zigzag walking time in men and women. A50:P50 MTH ratio was inversely (p < 0.05) correlated to zigzag walking time in both men and women. Our results suggest that thigh MTH ratio is independent of age-related muscle mass loss detected by aLM.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Aagaard P, Suetta C, Caserotti P, Magnusson SP, Kjaer M (2010) Role of the nervous system in sarcopenia and muscle atrophy with aging: strength training as a countermeasure. Scand J Med Sci Sports 20:49–64
Abe T, Kondo M, Kawakami Y, Fukunaga T (1994) Prediction equations for body composition of Japanese adults by B-mode ultrasound. Am J Hum Biol 6:161–170
Abe T, Kawakami Y, Suzuki Y, Gunji A, Fukunaga T (1997) Effects of 20 days bed rest on muscle morphology. J Gravit Physiol 4:S10–S14
Abe T, Sakamaki M, Yasuda T, Bemben MG, Kondo M, Kawakami Y, Fukunaga T (2011) Age-related, site-specific muscle loss in 1507 Japanese men and women aged 20 to 95 years. J Sports Sci Med 10:145–150
Abe T, Thiebaud RS, Loenneke JP, Loftin M, Bemben MG, Fukunaga T (2012a) Influence of severe sarcopenia on cardiovascular risk factors in nonobese men. Metab Syndr Relat Disord 10:407–412
Abe T, Ogawa M, Loenneke JP, Thiebaud RS, Loftin M, Mitsukawa N (2012b) Relationship between site-specific loss of thigh muscle and gait performance in women: the HIREGASAKI study. Arch Gerontol Geriatr 55:e21–e25
Abe T, Ogawa M, Loenneke JP, Thiebaud RS, Loftin M, Mitsukawa N (2013a) Association between site-specific muscle loss of lower body and one-leg standing balance in active women: the HIREGASAKI study. Geriatr Gerontol Int. doi:10.1111/ggi.12112, Publish online: 07.07.2013
Abe T, Loenneke JP, Thiebaud RS, Fukunaga T (2013b) Age-related site-specific muscle wasting of upper and lower extremities and trunk in Japanese men and women. Age (Dordr). doi:10.1007/s11357-013-9600-5, Publish online: 17.11.2013
Abe T, Thiebaud RS, Loenneke JP, Loftin M, Fukunaga T (2014) Prevalence of site-specific thigh sarcopenia in Japanese men and women. Age (Dordr) 36:417–426
Baumgartner RN, Koehler KM, Gallagher D, Romero L, Heymsfield SB, Ross R, Garry PJ, Linderman RD (1998) Epidemiology of sarcopenia among the elderly in New Mexico. Am J Epidemiol 147:755–763
Beyer I, Mets T, Bautmans I (2012) Chronic low-grade inflammation and age-related sarcopenia. Curr Opin Clin Nutr Metab Care 15:12–22
Bunout D, de la Maza MP, Barrera G, Leiva L, Hirsch S (2011) Association between sarcopenia and mortality in healthy older people. Australas J Ageing 30:89–92
Burns JM, Johnson DK, Watts A, Swerdlow RH, Brooks WM (2010) Reduced lean mass in early Alzheimer disease and its association with brain atrophy. Arch Neurol 67:428–433
Cruz-Jentoft AJ, Baeyens JP, Bauer JM, Boirie Y, Cederholm T, Landi F, Martin FC, Michel JP, Rolland Y, Schneider SM, Topinkova E, Vandewoude M, Zamboni M, European Working Group on Sarcopenia in Older People (2010) European Working Group on Sarcopenia in Older People. Sarcopenia: European consensus on definition and diagnosis. Age Ageing 39:412–423
Frontera WR, Reid KF, Phillips EM, Krivickas LS, Hughes VA, Roubenoff R, Fielding RA (2008) Muscle fiber size and function in elderly humans: a longitudinal study. J Appl Physiol 105:637–642
Inaba Y, Yoshioka S, Iida Y, Hay DC, Fukashiro S (2013) A biomechanical study of side steps at different distances. J Appl Biomech 29:336–345
Janssen I (2010) Evolution of sarcopenia research. Appl Physiol Nutr Metab 35:707–712
Maden-Wilkinson TM, Degens H, Jones DA, McPhee JS (2013) Comparison of MRI and DXA to measure muscle size and age-related atrophy in thigh muscles. J Musculoskelet Neuronal Interact 13:282–290
Mitchell WK, Williams J, Atherton P, Larvin M, Lund J, Narici M (2012) Sarcopenia, dynapenia, and the impact of advancing age on human skeletal muscle size and strength; a quantitative review. Front Physiol 3:260
Miyatani M, Kanehisa H, Kuno S, Nishijima T, Fukunaga T (2002) Validity of ultrasonography muscle thickness measurements for estimating muscle volume of knee extensors in humans. Eur J Appl Physiol 86:203–208
Ogawa M, Yasuda T, Abe T (2012a) Component characteristics of thigh muscle volume in young and older healthy men. Clin Physiol Funct Imaging 32:89–93
Ogawa M, Mitsukawa N, Loftin M, Abe T (2012b) Association of vigorous physical activity with age-related, site-specific loss of thigh muscle in women: the HIREGASAKI study. J Trainol 1:6–9
Park SW, Goodpaster BH, Lee JS, Kuller L, Boudreau R, De Rekeneire N, Harris TB, Kritchevsky S, Tylavsky FA, Nevitt M, Cho YW, Newman AB, Health, Aging, and Body Composition Study (2009) Excessive loss of skeletal muscle mass in older adults with type 2 diabetes. Diabetes Care 32:1993–1997
Power GA, Dalton BH, Behm DG, Doherty TJ, Vandervoort AA, Rice CL (2012) Motor unit survival in lifelong runners is muscle dependent. Med Sci Sports Exerc 44:1235–1242
Rosenberg IH (1997) Sarcopenia: origins and clinical relevance. J Nutr 127:990S–991S
Ryall JG, Schertzer JD, Lynch GS (2008) Cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying age-related skeletal muscle wasting and weakness. Biogerontology 9:213–228
Takai Y, Ohta M, Akagi R, Wakahara T, Kawakami Y, Fukunaga T, Kanehisa H (2013) Applicability of ultrasound muscle thickness measurements for predicting fat-free mass in elderly population. J Nutr Health Aging, in press
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
About this article
Cite this article
Abe, T., Patterson, K.M., Stover, C.D. et al. Site-specific thigh muscle loss as an independent phenomenon for age-related muscle loss in middle-aged and older men and women. AGE 36, 1353–1358 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11357-014-9634-3
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11357-014-9634-3