老年人肌肉減少症指標與血液抗發炎／發炎指標之關係研究

Introduction: Sarcopenia is a condition characterized by gradual and comprehensive changes caused by aging and inactivity, as well as systemic inflammation. Improving anti-inflammatory abilities can protect tissues as people age. Few studies have indicated, however, whether the sarcopenia index is related to anti-inflammatory abilities. Therefore, this study investigated indicators of sarcopenia (skeletal muscle mass index, peak expiratory flow, grip strength, and gait speed for 4 m) and anti-inflammatory indicators in the blood (interleukin [IL]-4, IL-10, inflammation index high sensitivity C-reactive protein [hsCRP], IL-6, and tumor necrosis factor alpha) of older patients, as well as the correlations among the indicators. Methods: The study participants consisted of 138 Taiwanese people aged older than 65 years. Each of the participants was evaluated for indicators of sarcopenia after 5 mL of blood was collected from the participant's antecubital vein. All the data were analyzed using multiple regression analysis. The α level was set to .05. Results: Handgrip strength and appendicular skeletal muscle mass index were positively correlated with IL-10 concentration (r = .165, p = .031 and r = .155, p = .039, respectively). Peak expiratory flow could predict IL-10 concentration (r = .230, p = .009), IL-10/IL-6 ratio (r = .246, p = .005), and IL-10/hsCRP ratio (r = .268, p = .003). Conclusion: The higher a patient's expiratory flow, the higher the anti-inflammatory performance in the blood is. In the future, older patients should receive more physical training to improve their respiratory muscle strength, which affects the relative abundance of circulating cytokines and can be a crucial strategy for improving chronic inflammation in older patients.