Post-intensive care clinical and functional outcomes in adults with sarcopenia.

Sarcopenia is a condition of weakness and a low amount of muscle in adults. Out of the hospital, adults with sarcopenia have more difficulty walking, higher hospitalization rates, and a lower life expectancy. When these adults are admitted to the hospital and need life support in an intensive care unit, sarcopenia can lower how far they can walk and may lower the chances of survival. However, the research on sarcopenia in the intensive care unit is minimal and there is limited guidance on its assessment and management. This research program aims to increase the knowledge of 1) the features of sarcopenia; 2) the influence of sarcopenia on survival, hospital discharge, and post-intensive care weakness; and 3) nutrition and physical therapies that may effectively be used to improve outcomes in adults with sarcopenia who are admitted to an intensive care unit and require life support. This research’s results will be shared widely among the intensive care community as we expect this research to inform how international intensive care clinicians assess and treat adults with sarcopenia. This research can also be used to develop future clinical trials on therapies targeted to adults with sarcopenia in the intensive care unit.