ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Screening of sarcopenia is proposed to identify patients who require the diagnosis of this condition. One of the proposed screening tools is Strength, Assistance with walking, Rise from a chair, Climb stairs, Fall and Calf Circumference (SARC-CalF). However, evidence for its applicability, especially in a hospital setting, is scarce. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate the association between "suggestive signs of sarcopenia using SARC-CalF" and clinical outcomes. METHODS: Prospective cohort study with hospitalized patients aged ≥60 years was conducted, and they were evaluated within 48 h of admission using the SARC-CalF tool. Calf circumference and handgrip strength were measured, and the "timed get up and go" test was performed in all patients. The outcomes for testing the predictive validity of SARC-CalF were prolonged length of hospital stay, in-hospital death, hospital readmission, and mortality in 6 months. RESULTS: Of the 554 patients (55.22 ± 14.91 years old, 52.9% males) evaluated, 17.3% were classified as having "suggestive signs of sarcopenia using SARC-CalF." In univariate analysis, "suggestive signs of sarcopenia using SARC-CalF" was associated with in-hospital death (P = .002) and mortality in 6 months (P = .004). However, in the multivariate analysis, these associations were not significant. CONCLUSION: SARC-CalF was not an independent predictor of clinical outcomes during the hospitalization neither in the following 6 months of discharge.
