Faculty Collaboration Database

Identifying High-Attenuating and Low-Attenuating Muscle Using Computerized Tomography and Exploring Its Impact on Physical Function and Muscle Strength in Obese Critically Ill Patients. Nutr Clin Pract 2020 Feb;35(1):133-141

Date

06/07/2019

Pubmed ID

31172570

Pubmed Central ID

PMC10515294

DOI

10.1002/ncp.10325

Scopus ID

2-s2.0-85067355654 (requires institutional sign-in at Scopus site)   2 Citations

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Computed tomography (CT) methods to estimate sarcopenia in obesity do not differentiate high-attenuating from low-attenuating muscle. The primary purpose of this study was to determine agreement between a CT method using general workstation-derived total and high-attenuating psoas muscle cross-sectional area (CSA) and a commercially available segmentation software-derived value. Secondary purpose was to explore the relationship between quantity of high-attenuating muscle to physical functioning in a pilot cohort of obese medical intensive care unit (MICU) patients.

METHODS: We conducted a prospective observational cross-sectional study. CT images of obese MICU patients were reconstructed to calculate total psoas muscle, low-attenuating muscle, and high-attenuating muscle within the third lumbar psoas CSA using a CT method and commercial software. We performed blinded outcome measures of CSA, physical function, and muscle strength in 28 patients.

RESULTS: Concordance correlation coefficient for identifying total psoas muscle was 0.96 (95% confidence interval: 0.93-0.98, P-value < 0.0001) between CT method and commercial software. There was moderate correlation between modified Medical Research Council muscle strength scores and high-attenuating psoas muscle CSA (r = 0.47, P = 0.01) and lower extremity strength and high-attenuating psoas muscle CSA (r = 0.40, P = 0.04).

CONCLUSION: There was strong agreement between our CT method and a commercial software method to identify total psoas muscle CSA in obesity. Greater total high-attenuating psoas CSA moderately correlated with muscle strength. Additional studies using more objective markers of muscle strength validating these findings are needed.

Author List

Patel JJ, Baruah D, Sobush D, Koester K, Aase J, Zellner S, Graf J, Durand MJ, Szabo A, Shahir K

Authors

Matt Durand PhD Associate Professor in the Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation department at Medical College of Wisconsin
Aniko Szabo PhD Professor in the Institute for Health and Equity department at Medical College of Wisconsin
Stephanie Zellner in the CTSI department at Medical College of Wisconsin - CTSI

MESH terms used to index this publication - Major topics in bold

Aged
Anatomy, Cross-Sectional
Cohort Studies
Critical Illness
Cross-Sectional Studies
Female
Humans
Intensive Care Units
Male
Middle Aged
Muscle Strength
Obesity
Prospective Studies
Psoas Muscles
Sarcopenia
Software
Tomography, X-Ray Computed