Conclusion The prevalence of sarcopenia depends mostly on the diagnostic cut-off points of different criteria .
Preoperative sarcopenia is a risk factor for both long-term and short-term outcomes
Background The impact of sarcopenia on the outcome of gastrointestinal ( GI ) oncological patients is still controversial .
We aim to discuss the prevalence of sarcopenia and its relation to the oncological outcome .
Impact of low skeletal muscle mass and density on short and long-term outcome after resection of stage I-III colorectal cancer.
BACKGROUND Preoperative low skeletal muscle mass and density are associated with increased postoperative morbidity in patients undergoing curative colorectal cancer ( CRC ) surgery . However , the long-term effects of low skeletal muscle mass and density remain uncertain . METHODS Patients with stage I-III CRC undergoing surgery , enrolled in a prospect i ve observational cohort study , were included .  Skeletal muscle mass and density were measured on CT . Patients with high and low skeletal muscle mass and density were compared regarding postoperative complications , disease-free survival ( DFS ) , overall survival ( OS ) , and cancer-specific survival ( CSS ) . RESULTS In total , 816 patients ( 53.9 % males , median age 70 ) were included ; 50.4 % had low skeletal muscle mass and 64.1 % low density . The severe postoperative complication rate was significantly higher in patients with low versus high skeletal muscle and density ( 20.9 % versus 13.6 % , p = 0.006 ; 20.0 % versus 11.8 % , p = 0.003 ) . Low skeletal muscle mass ( OR 1.91 , p = 0.018 ) and density ( OR 1.87 , p = 0.045 ) were independently associated with severe postoperative complications . Ninety-day mortality was higher in patients with low skeletal muscle mass and density compared with patients with high skeletal muscle mass and density ( 3.6 % versus 1.7 % , p = 0.091 ; 3.4 % versus 1.0 % , p = 0.038 ) . No differences in DFS were observed . After adjustment for covariates such as age and comorbidity , univariate differences in OS and CSS diminished . CONCLUSIONS Low skeletal muscle mass and density are associated with short-term , but not long-term , outcome in patients undergoing CRC surgery . These findings recommend putting more emphasis on preoperative management of patients at risk for surgical complications , but do not support benefit for long-term outcome
Conclusion The prevalence of sarcopenia depends mostly on the diagnostic cut-off points of different criteria .
Preoperative sarcopenia is a risk factor for both long-term and short-term outcomes
Background The impact of sarcopenia on the outcome of gastrointestinal ( GI ) oncological patients is still controversial .
We aim to discuss the prevalence of sarcopenia and its relation to the oncological outcome .