Conclusions and Relevance This systematic review and meta- analysis did not show a significant beneficial or detrimental association of HT with muscle mass .
Importance Hormone therapy ( HT ) has been suggested for protection against age-related muscle weakness in women .
However , the potential for HT-associated health risks necessitates a better underst and ing of the direction and magnitude of the association between HT and health outcomes , such as lean body mass ( LBM ) .
Objective To determine whether HT was associated with reduced LBM loss compared with not receiving HT  among postmenopausal women aged 50 years and older .
Operational definitions of sarcopenia and their associations with 5-year changes in falls risk in community-dwelling middle-aged and older adults
Summary Sarcopenia may be diagnosed in the clinic using operational definitions based on low muscle mass or function . This prospect i ve , population -based study revealed that sex-specific associations may exist between operational definitions of sarcopenia and falls in community-dwelling middle-aged and older adults . Introduction The objective of this study is to verify associations between sarcopenia and falls risk and to determine changes in sarcopenia prevalence over 5 years in middle-aged and older men and women according to different anthropometric and performance-based operational definitions . Methods N = 681 volunteers ( 48 % female ; mean ± SD age 61.4 ± 7.0 years ) participated in baseline and follow-up assessment s ( mean 5.1 ± 0.5 years later ) . Appendicular lean mass ( ALM ) was assessed by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry , h and grip ( HGS ) and lower-limb ( LLS ) strength were assessed by dynamometry , and falls risk was determined using the physiological profile assessment . Anthropometric definitions ( ALM/height squared [ ALM – H ] , ALM/weight × 100 and a residuals method [ ALM – R ] ) and performance-based definitions ( HGS , LLS and upper- and lower-limb muscle quality [ LMQ ] ) of sarcopenia were examined . The lowest 20 % of the sex-specific distribution for each definition at baseline was classified as sarcopenia . Results Sarcopenia prevalence increased after 5 years for all operational definitions except ALM – H ( men : −4.0 % ; women : −5.5 % ) . Men classified with sarcopenia according to anthropometric definitions , and women classified with sarcopenia according to performance-based definitions , had significant increases in falls risk over 5 years ( all P < 0.05 ) compared to individuals without sarcopenia . Significant sex interactions were observed for ALM-R , LLS and LMQ ( all P < 0.05 ) definitions . Conclusions Sarcopenia prevalence generally increases at a higher rate when assessed using performance-based definitions . Sarcopenia is associated with increases in falls risk over 5 years in community-dwelling middle-aged and older adults , but sex-specific differences may exist according to different anthropometric or performance-based definitions
Conclusions and Relevance This systematic review and meta- analysis did not show a significant beneficial or detrimental association of HT with muscle mass .
Importance Hormone therapy ( HT ) has been suggested for protection against age-related muscle weakness in women .
However , the potential for HT-associated health risks necessitates a better underst and ing of the direction and magnitude of the association between HT and health outcomes , such as lean body mass ( LBM ) .
Objective To determine whether HT was associated with reduced LBM loss compared with not receiving HT  among postmenopausal women aged 50 years and older .