Muscle matters: The relationship between skeletal muscle and cardiac muscle in older people—A Cross‐Sectional Prospective Observational Study

BACKGROUND: The term "cardiosarcopenia" has been proposed to describe the interrelated decline in both skeletal muscle mass and cardiovascular function. This study aimed to (1) compare cardiac structure and function between individuals with low and normal handgrip strength (HGS) and (2) examine the correlation between cardiac structure and function with HGS, gait speed, and muscle mass measured via muscle ultrasound (US). METHODS: The study population comprised 93 older adults attending a geriatric outpatient clinic who reported no prior instances of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease. Muscle strength was evaluated using HGS. Muscle mass was assessed using US to measure the thickness of the gastrocnemius medialis (GCM-thickness), rectus femoris (RF-thickness), and anterior thigh (AT-thickness) muscles, as well as the cross-sectional area of the RF (RF-CSA). Transthoracic echocardiography was performed, and left ventricular (LV) mass was calculated using the Devereux formula. RESULTS: LV mass was significantly lower in the low HGS group compared with the normal HGS group (153.27 32.31 g vs 175.02 61.46 g, P = 0.029). Additionally, the low HGS group had lower LV posterior wall thickness compared with the normal HGS group (P = 0.017). LV mass was weakly correlated with GCM-thickness and gait speed, and LV end-diastolic diameter had weak/moderate correlations with HGS, RF-CSA, RF-thickness, and AT-thickness. CONCLUSION: Ventricular mass in older adults significantly correlates with parameters of muscle mass, strength, and performance, which decline with age. To reveal the clinical effects of the reduced LV mass in patients with HGS further longitudinal studies are needed.