PURPOSE
This study aimed to investigate the associations of sarcopenia with rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis in the general population of Korean adults.
METHODS
We analyzed the data for 11,466 adults aged ≥40 years from the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2008-2011. Dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry was used to measure the skeletal muscle mass. Sarcopenia was defined when the appendicular skeletal muscle index was less than the sex-specific average minus the two standard deviations in the young reference group(age, 20-39 years). Survey logistic regression analysis was used to assess the association of sarcopenia with rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis.
RESULTS
Sarcopenia status was dose-dependently associated with a higher risk of rheumatoid arthritis, after adjustment for potential confounders(p-trend=.002, odds ratio [OR], 2.14; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.13, 4.05 in sarcopenia group vs. high muscle mass group). However, a higher risk of osteoarthritis was observed in pre-sarcopenia group compared with the high muscle mass group(OR, 1.45; 95% CI, 1.03, 2.05), but not in sarcopenia group.
CONCLUSIONS
We found that sarcopenia status was associated with rheumatoid arthritis, and pre-sarcopenia status was associated with osteoarthritis. Our findings suggest that maintaining a skeletal muscle could be beneficial in preventing musculoskeletal disorders, including rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis.