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Document Type

Abstract

Publication Date

12-1-2024

Abstract

Background/Purpose: Ultrasonographic echo intensity (EI) has been used to indicate skeletal muscle quality. Although lower extremity strength decreases significantly more than upper extremity strength during muscle decay with aging, it has yet to be demonstrated whether EI of the whole thigh muscle affects strength, explosive power, and physical function (PF) in older persons. Through a meta-analysis, this study aimed to systematically assess the association of EI, MS, and PF in older adults.

Methods: A systematic approach to searching was performed using Boolean operators on PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, SPORTDiscus, and CINAHL up to October 2022. Studies of any design were included if the association between EI with MS and PF (strength, balance, and mobility) was investigated in healthy older persons. Study-related characteristics and Pearson's correlation coefficients were extracted. Fisher's z was used to convert Pearson r aggregation to a weighted average rz value, which was then back-transformed to r values. The random effects model was used to estimate the combined effect size and 95% confidence intervals, and heterogeneity was assessed using I2 statistics.

Results: Twenty-four studies (2,491 individuals, mean age of the study population 71.3 ± 5.5 years) were included in the meta-analysis. Among healthy older persons, EI was negatively associated with lower extremity maximal strength (r = -0.351, 95% CI: -0.411 to -0.288, P < 0.001) and explosive power (r = -0.342, 95% CI: -0.517 to -0.139, P = 0.001). Subgroup analysis revealed there was a significant negative correlation between EI and handgrip strength (r = -0.361, 95% CI: -0.463 to -0.249, P < 0.001). In contrast, there was only a small-scale and non-significant negative association between EI and gait speed (r = -0.003, 95% CI: -0.083 to -0.077, P = 0.943), whereas a weak non-significant correlation was observed with the chair stand test (r = 0.072, 95% CI: -0.045 to 0.187, P = 0.227).

Conclusion/Discussion: Enhanced EI in thigh muscles was found to be associated with lower strength and power, but not with balance and mobility in older persons. More well-designed large-sample studies and long-term follow-ups are warranted to provide applied value for this population's frailty prediction and risk assessment.

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