Sarcopenic Obesity in People with Alcoholic Use Disorder: Relation with Inflammation, Vascular Risk Factors and Serum Vitamin D Levels

Fatty infiltration of periarticular muscles in patients with osteonecrosis of the femoral head

PURPOSE

Muscle mass and fatty infiltration can be assessed on computed tomography (CT) images using the cross-sectional area (CSA) and computed tomography attenuation value (CTV). Femoral head collapse in osteonecrosis of the femoral head (ONFH) may affect both values. We investigated factors influencing the CSA and CTV of the periarticular muscles in patients with ONFH.

METHODS

Overall, 101 patients with ONFH with unilateral hip pain (stage 2, 24 patients; stage 3 A, 49 patients; and stage 3B, 28 patients) were included. The CSA and mean CTV of the bilateral gluteus maximus (Gmax), gluteus medius (Gmed), gluteus minimus (Gmin), and iliopsoas (IP) muscles were measured using CT cross-sections. Bilateral comparisons and associations with Japanese Investigation Committee (JIC) stage were analysed. Multiple regression analysis was used to evaluate factors associated with the CSA and CTV.

RESULTS

On the symptomatic side, the CSA was significantly lower for the Gmax, Gmed, and IP, whereas the CTV was significantly lower for all tested muscles (all p < 0.01). The CTV, but not the CSA, of the Gmax, Gmed, and Gmin was significantly associated with the JIC stage severity bilaterally (all p < 0.01). Multiple regression analysis showed significant associations of the CTV with age, sex, and JIC stage (all p < 0.01).

CONCLUSION

Symptomatic ONFH leads to decreased muscle mass and increased fatty infiltration. Femoral head collapse progression is associated with a decrease in the CTV. Periarticular muscle assessment, including on the contralateral side, is important in patients with ONFH, particularly in older women.

Osteosarcopenic adiposity and its relation to cancer and chronic diseases: Implications for research to delineate mechanisms and improve clinical outcomes

This is the third review in our series examining the connection between osteosarcopenic adiposity/obesity (OSA/OSO) syndrome and health impairments. The objective here was to examine whether there is a causal and/or bidirectional relationship between OSA and some chronic diseases. The search (in PubMed, Scopus, and WoS), screened for articles from their inception to the end of February 2024. Of n=859 articles retrieved, eleven met the eligibility criteria (having all three body composition compartments measured-bone, muscle, adipose tissue and being conducted in adult humans with chronic disease). The selected articles included four assessing OSA and cancers, one each assessing OSA and HIV, Cushing's disease (CD), chronic kidney disease (CKD), pulmonary function, and two for alcohol abuse-caused liver disease, as well as one 6-year study showing the progression to OSA over time. There was a positive relationship between OSA and each of the chronic diseases, as well as a possible bidirectional relationship between OSA and cancers. The evidence linking OSA with HIV, CD, CKD, liver disease, and pulmonary function, was insufficient to derive firm conclusions about their causal/bidirectional relations. This review emphasizes the need for a multidisciplinary approach in the management and treatment of chronic diseases where body composition assessment should get full attention. To close the knowledge gap, more studies about the role of OSA in chronic diseases are needed.

Prevalence of Osteosarcopenic Adiposity in Apparently Healthy Adults and Appraisal of Age, Sex, and Ethnic Differences

Osteosarcopenic adiposity (OSA) syndrome, the coexistence of osteoporosis, sarcopenia, and adiposity (either excess or redistributed/infiltrated), has been studied globally in different populations and regions (mostly in East Asia, less in Europe and North America), resulting in varied prevalence. We aimed to determine the prevalence of OSA in a large population of apparently healthy Caucasian adults (18-90 years) and to compare it with the prevalence reported in other studies and other ethnicities. This study included 9719 participants (6412 women and 3307 men), stratified into four age-group categories, and recruited from the general medical practices in Italy. OSA was defined based on body composition measurements using bioelectrical impedance BIA-ACC®, which enables assessment of total bone mass, muscle/lean, and adipose tissues. The overall prevalence of OSA was 21.9% in women and 14.0% in men, and it significantly increased in every subsequent age group for both women and men (p < 0.001). The OSA prevalence was not significantly different between men and women below 40 years; however, it was considerably higher in women over 40 years. Participants with OSA had a significantly lower BMI compared to those without OSA, indicating OSA is a separate disorder not necessarily related to physiological fluctuations of BMI. The prevalence in Asian populations was lower than in our sample, indicating ethnic specificity. The relatively high prevalence of OSA detected in this study's population across the age groups suggests the necessity for its appropriate and timely identification to prevent possible clinical outcomes, including fracture, dismobility, frailty, or chronic diseases.

Risk of major depressive increases with increasing frequency of alcohol drinking: a bidirectional two-sample Mendelian randomization analysis

Introduction

A growing body of evidence suggests that alcohol use disorders coexist with depression. However, the causal relationship between alcohol consumption and depression remains a topic of controversy.

Methods

We conducted a two-sample two-way Mendelian randomization analysis using genetic variants associated with alcohol use and major depressive disorder from a genome-wide association study.

Results

Our research indicates that drinking alcohol can reduce the risk of major depression (odds ratio: 0.71, 95% confidence interval: 0.54~0.93, p = 0.01), while increasing the frequency of drinking can increase the risk of major depression (odds ratio: 1.09, 95% confidence interval: 1.00~1.18, p = 0.04). Furthermore, our multivariate MR analysis demonstrated that even after accounting for different types of drinking, the promoting effect of drinking frequency on the likelihood of developing major depression still persists (odds ratio: 1.13, 95% confidence interval: 1.04~1.23, p = 0.005). Additionally, mediation analysis using a two-step MR approach revealed that this effect is partially mediated by the adiposity index, with a mediated proportion of 37.5% (95% confidence interval: 0.22 to 0.38).

Discussion

In this study, we found that alcohol consumption can alleviate major depression, while alcohol intake frequency can aggravate it.These findings have important implications for the development of prevention and intervention strategies targeting alcohol-related depression.

Pathophysiological-Based Nutritional Interventions in Cirrhotic Patients with Sarcopenic Obesity: A State-of-the-Art Narrative Review

In recent decades, following the spread of obesity, metabolic dysfunction has come to represent the leading cause of liver disease. The classical clinical presentation of the cirrhotic patient has, therefore, greatly changed, with a dramatic increase in subjects who appear overweight or obese. Due to an obesogenic lifestyle (lack of physical activity and overall malnutrition, with an excess of caloric intake together with a deficit of proteins and micronutrients), these patients frequently develop a complex clinical condition defined as sarcopenic obesity (SO). The interplay between cirrhosis and SO lies in the sharing of multiple pathogenetic mechanisms, including malnutrition/malabsorption, chronic inflammation, hyperammonemia and insulin resistance. The presence of SO worsens the outcome of cirrhotic patients, affecting overall morbidity and mortality. International nutrition and liver diseases societies strongly agree on recommending the use of food as an integral part of the healing process in the comprehensive management of these patients, including a reduction in caloric intake, protein and micronutrient supplementation and sodium restriction. Based on the pathophysiological paths shared by cirrhosis and SO, this narrative review aims to highlight the nutritional interventions currently advocated by international guidelines, as well as to provide hints on the possible role of micronutrients and nutraceuticals in the treatment of this multifaceted clinical condition.

Do lifestyle, anthropometric and demographic factors associated with muscle strength differ in a UK and Japanese cohort? An exploratory analysis

BACKGROUND

Muscle weakness is associated with adverse clinical outcomes including disability and mortality. We report demographic, anthropometric and lifestyle correlates of grip strength in UK and Japanese population-based cohorts.

AIM

To report prevalence of low grip strength according to 2019 European Working Group on Sarcopenia in Older People (EWGSOP2) and 2019 Asian Working Group for Sarcopenia (AWGS 2019) thresholds and to consider correlates of grip strength in Eastern and Western populations.

METHODS

UK (1572 men; 1415 women) and Japanese (519 men; 1027 women) participants were recruited from two cohorts harmonised by consensus. Muscle strength was measured by grip strength dynamometry. Potential correlates of grip strength were examined using sex-stratified linear regression; univariate correlates (p < 0.05) were included in mutually adjusted models.

RESULTS

Mean (SD) age was 66.2 (2.8) and 65.8 (12.3) in UK and Japanese cohorts, respectively. Prevalence of low grip strength was higher in Japanese participants (EWGSOP2 5.4% versus 2.4%, AWGS 2019 9.0% versus 3.7%). In both cohorts and sexes, univariate correlates of lower grip strength were older age, shorter height, not consuming alcohol, leaving education earlier and greater comorbidity. Apart from older age and shorter height, the only factors related to lower grip strength in mutually adjusted analyses were greater comorbidity among UK participants (kg difference in grip strength (95%CI) per additional comorbidity - 0.60(- 0.98, - 0.21) among men and - 0.50(- 0.86, - 0.13) among women) and not consuming alcohol among Japanese men (- 1.33(- 2.51, - 0.15)).

DISCUSSION

Correlates of muscle strength were similar in both cohorts.

CONCLUSIONS

A global approach to age-related muscle weakness prevention may be appropriate.

Understanding the Consequences of Fatty Bone and Fatty Muscle: How the Osteosarcopenic Adiposity Phenotype Uncovers the Deterioration of Body Composition

Adiposity is central to aging and several chronic diseases. Adiposity encompasses not just the excess adipose tissue but also body fat redistribution, fat infiltration, hypertrophy of adipocytes, and the shifting of mesenchymal stem cell commitment to adipogenesis. Bone marrow adipose tissue expansion, inflammatory adipokines, and adipocyte-derived extracellular vesicles are central to the development of osteopenic adiposity. Adipose tissue infiltration and local adipogenesis within the muscle are critical in developing sarcopenic adiposity and subsequent poorer functional outcomes. Ultimately, osteosarcopenic adiposity syndrome is the result of all the processes noted above: fat infiltration and adipocyte expansion and redistribution within the bone, muscle, and adipose tissues, resulting in bone loss, muscle mass/strength loss, deteriorated adipose tissue, and subsequent functional decline. Increased fat tissue, typically referred to as obesity and expressed by body mass index (the latter often used inadequately), is now occurring in younger age groups, suggesting people will live longer with the negative effects of adiposity. This review discusses the role of adiposity in the deterioration of bone and muscle, as well as adipose tissue itself. It reveals how considering and including adiposity in the definition and diagnosis of osteopenic adiposity, sarcopenic adiposity, and osteosarcopenic adiposity will help in better understanding the pathophysiology of each and accelerate possible therapies and prevention approaches for both relatively healthy individuals or those with chronic disease.