Relationship between Stage of Chronic Kidney Disease and Sarcopenia in Korean Aged 40 Years and Older Using the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination

Background Methods We conducted a cross-sectional study based on data in the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, 2008-2011. In total, 11,625 subjects aged 40 years or older who underwent dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry were analyzed. Sarcopenia was defined based on values of appendicular skeletal muscle mass as a percentage of body weight (ASM/Wt) two standard deviations below the gender-specific mean for young adults. Esti- mated glomerular filtration rates (eGFR) were calculated using the CKD-EPI equation. Results Mean age, body mass index (BMI), and HOMA-IR were higher and caloric intake, physical activity, and vitamin D level were lower in the sarcopenia groups in both men and women. As the stage of CKD increased, the prevalence of sarcopenia increased, even in the early stages of CKD (normal and CKD1, 2, and 3-5: 2.6%, 5.6%, and 18.1% in men and 5.3%, 7.1%, and 12.6% in women, respectively; p < 0.001). In addition, a correlation analysis showed that GFR and ASM/Wt had significant correlations in both men and women. Logistic regression analyses, after adjusting for age, BMI, caloric intake, log(physical activity), vita- min D level, and log(HOMA-IR), showed that the odds ratio for sarcopenia with respect to