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 .
Functional compromise reflected by sarcopenia, frailty, and nutritional depletion predicts adverse postoperative outcome after colorectal cancer surgery.
OBJECTIVE To determine the association of sarcopenia with postoperative morbidity and mortality after colorectal surgery . BACKGROUND Functional compromise in elderly colorectal surgical patients is considered as a significant factor of impaired postoperative recovery . Therefore , the predictive value of preoperative functional compromise assessment was investigated . Sarcopenia is a hallmark of functional compromise . METHODS A total of 310 consecutive patients who underwent oncologic colorectal surgery  were included in a prospect i ve digital data base . Sarcopenia was assessed using the L3 muscle index utilizing Osirix on preoperative computed tomography . Groningen Frailty Indicator and Short Nutritional Assessment Question naire scores were used to assess frailty and nutritional compromise . Predictors for anastomotic leakage , sepsis , and mortality were analyzed by logistic regression analysis . RESULTS Age was an independent predictor of mortality [ P = 0.04 ; odds ratio , 1.17 ; 95 % confidence interval ( CI ) , 1.01 - 1.37 ] . Thirty-day/in-hospital mortality rate in sarcopenic patients was 8.8 % versus 0.7 % in nonsarcopenic patients ( P = 0.001 ; odds ratio , 15.5 ; 95 % CI , 2.00 - 120 ) . Sarcopenia was not predictive for anastomotic leakage or sepsis . Combination of high  Short Nutritional Assessment Question naire score , high Groningen Frailty Indicator score , and sarcopenia strongly predicted sepsis ( P = 0.001 ; odds ratio , 25.1 ; 95 % CI , 5.11 - 123 ) , sensitivity , 46 % ; specificity , 97 % ; positive likelihood ratio , 13 ( 95 % CI , 4.4 - 38 ) ; negative likelihood ratio , 0.57 ( 95 % CI , 0.33 - 0.97 ) . CONCLUSIONS Functional compromise in colorectal cancer surgery is associated with adverse postoperative outcome . Assessment of functional compromise by means of a nutritional question naire ( Short Nutritional Assessment Question naire ) , a frailty question naire ( Groningen Frailty Indicator ) , and sarcopenia measurement ( L3 muscle index ) can accurately predict postoperative sepsis
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 .