Validation of the Danish SARC-F in hospitalized, geriatric medical patients

: Objectives: Validation of the Danish version of the SARC-F (Strength, Assistance in walking, Rise
from a chair, Climb stairs, and Falls) for hospitalized geriatric medical patients, compared against the original
EWGSOP (European Working Group on Sarcopenia in Older People) and revised EWGSOP2 definition for
sarcopenia. Additionally, investigation of the ability of SARC-F to individually identify low strength/function
and muscle mass. Design: Cross-sectional analysis of data from an RCT. Setting: Hospital, Medical Department.
Participants: 122 geriatric medical patients (65.6% women) ≥ 70 years of age with mixed medical conditions.
Measurements: SARC-F screening, diagnostic assessment of sarcopenia (hand-grip strength, muscle mass
measured by dual-frequency bio-impedance analysis, and 4-m usual gait speed). Results: The prevalence of
risk of sarcopenia (SARC-F ≥ 4) was 48.3%, while it was diagnosed in 65.8% and 21.7%, with EWGSOP
and EWGSOP2, respectively. The sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, negative predictive value
according to EWGSOP were 50.0 %, 53.7 %, 67.2% and 36.1%, while they were 53.8 %, 53.2 %, 24.1%
and 80.6%, according to EWGSOP2 (all participants). The ability of SARC-F to predict reduced strength,
function, and muscle mass was modest. There was a significant negative linear, yet weak, relationship between
total SARC-F score and hand-grip strength (R2
=0.033) and 4-m gait speed (R2
=0.111), but not muscle mass
(R2
=0.004). Conclusion: SARC-F does not seem to be a suitable screening tool for identifying and excluding
non-sarcopenic geriatric patients. Furthermore, the SARC-F score was more strongly correlated with reduced
muscle strength and physical function than with low muscle mass.