The association between delirium and sarcopenia in older adult patients admitted to acute geriatrics units: Results from the GLISTEN multicenter observational study

Background & aims: To date, studies assessing the relationship between sarcopenia and delirium, two of the most common geriatric syndromes, are lacking. We sought to explore this association by investigating the co-occurrence of these two conditions and the independent association between them in a population of hospitalized older adults. Methods: Cross-sectional multicenter analysis of older adults consecutively admitted to 12 acute geriatric units (AGUs). Sarcopenia was assessed upon admission by evaluating the presence of low skeletal mass index (kg/m2), and either low handgrip strength or low walking speed (European Working Group on Sarcopenia in Older People, EWGSOP criteria). Skeletal muscle mass was estimated using bioimpedance analysis. Participants underwent a comprehensive geriatric assessment upon admission; information concerning demographics, cognition (Short Portable Status Mental Questionnaire, SPMSQ) functional (Instrumental Activities of Daily Living, IADL and Basic-Activities of Daily Living, BADL), and health status (Charlson Index and specific diseases) was evaluated. The presence of delirium upon admission was ascertained as an explicit clinical diagnosis recorded by the researcher of each centre on the data form. All association estimates were reported as Prevalence Ratios (PRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs), using a Cox hazard proportional regression model with robust variance and constant time. Results: Of the 588 analyzed patients (mean age = 80.9 ± 6.8, 53.2% females), 199 (33.8%) had sarcopenia upon admission to the AGU. According to a multivariable Cox regression, delirium upon admission (PR 1.66, 95% CI: 1.12-2.45), IADL total score (PR 0.93, 95% CI: 0.87-0.98), Body Mass Index values (BMI) ranging from 18.5 to 25.0 (PR 1.70, 95% CI: 1.33-2.18), BMI values >18.5 (PR 2.53, 95% CI: 1.81-3.53), previous stroke (PR 1.51, 95% CI: 1.10-2.07) and chronic heart failure (CHF) (PR 1.31, 95% CI: 1.02-1.68) were significantly and independently associated with sarcopenia upon admission to the AGU. Conclusion: The study, carried out in a population of hospitalized older patients, shows that a diagnosis of delirium upon admission to the AGU was more frequent in those with sarcopenia than in others. Furthermore, the study found that delirium was independently associated with the risk of being sarcopenic upon admission to the AGU. Future studies are needed to confirm this association.