Author(s)

ShiPing Wang

Affiliation(s)

Department of Intensive Care Medicine, First Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou 215006, Jiangsu, China.

Corresponding Author

ShiPing Wang

ABSTRACT

Objective: To Explore the Efficacy of Ultrasound in Diagnosing Sarcopenia in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU)Introduction: Critically ill patients with sarcopenia experience prolonged mechanical ventilation duration, extended hospital stay, and increased mortality. Ultrasound is characterized by convenience, radiation-free nature, and low cost in the ICU setting; however, few studies have investigated its efficacy in diagnosing sarcopenia among ICU patients. Methods: The skeletal muscle area at the third lumbar vertebra (L3 SMA) was calculated by analyzing abdominal computed tomography (CT) images acquired at the time of patient admission. Ultrasound was used to scan the cross-sectional area (RFCSA) and thickness (RFMT) of the rectus femoris muscle in the patients’ right lower limbs. With CT as the gold standard, a diagnostic study was conducted to evaluate the efficacy of ultrasound in diagnosing sarcopenia in ICU patients. Results: Among the 366 enrolled patients, regardless of gender, those with sarcopenia had lower values of age, body mass index (BMI), L3 SMA, RFCSA, and RFMT compared with patients without sarcopenia. For the diagnosis of sarcopenia in ICU patients using ultrasound-measured RFCSA, the area under the curve (AUC) was 0.794 in males and 0.766 in females. When using ultrasound-measured RFMT for diagnosis, the AUC was 0.791 in males and 0.736 in females. The combined use of these two ultrasound parameters further improved the diagnostic efficacy. Conclusion: Ultrasound can serve as a reliable method for sarcopenia screening in ICU patients.

KEYWORDS

ICU; Ultrasound; Sarcopenia; Diagnostic efficacy

CITE THIS PAPER

ShiPing Wang. Efficacy analysis of ultrasonic diagnosis for sarcopenia in patients in the intensive care unit. Journal of Pharmaceutical and Medical Research. 2025, 7(3): 44-49. DOI: https://doi.org/10.61784/jpmr3055.

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