The Conceptual Definition of Sarcopenia: Delphi Consensus from the Global Leadership Initiative in Sarcopenia (GLIS).
Level 5 - mechanism / opinion, no new human data
Expert consensus Delphi study without new human trial or empirical diagnostic validation data.
PubMed 38520141 · doi:10.1093/ageing/afae052
What was done
The Global Leadership Initiative in Sarcopenia (GLIS) steering committee convened representatives from scientific societies across seven regions to develop a global conceptual definition of sarcopenia. Between 2022 and 2023, invited members completed a two-phase online Delphi study evaluating statements using predefined agreement thresholds: strong (>80%, accepted), moderate (70-80%, reintroduced), and low (<70%, rejected).
What was found
A total of 107 participants (mean age 54 ± 12 years, 64% men) from 29 countries completed the survey. Twenty statements reached strong agreement (>80%), including 6 on general aspects, 3 on components, and 11 on outcomes. Strongest agreement occurred for the statement that sarcopenia prevalence increases with age (98.3%) and that sarcopenia increases the risk of impaired physical performance (97.9%). Core components accepted were muscle strength (93.1%), muscle mass (89.4%), and muscle-specific strength (80.8%). Impaired physical performance was accepted as an outcome rather than a component.
Why it matters
This establishes the first unified global conceptual framework for sarcopenia, delineating intrinsic muscle pathology from downstream functional outcomes to guide future operational diagnostic criteria.
Limits
The findings reflect expert opinion and consensus voting rather than primary clinical or diagnostic accuracy data. The sample size was limited to 107 respondents with 64% male representation. The study establishes only a conceptual definition and does not provide operational cut-off values or diagnostic algorithms.
Cited by
- supports Age-related muscle loss is called sarcopenia.