Sarcopenia and Related Factors in Lipedema

Summary

Lipedema is a common disease of subcutaneous adipose tissue. The most common complaint of patients with swelling in the affected extremity is pain. In addition, patients with lipedema may experience conditions that can greatly affect the health and quality of life of the individual, such as loss of muscle strength and exercise capacity, and deterioration in activity levels of daily living. It is still unknown whether the decrease in muscle strength in patients with lipedema is part of this condition or whether decreased activity levels lead to decreased muscle strength.

Sarcopenia is an important health problem characterized by age-related loss of muscle mass and muscle function. The relationship between muscle weakness and sarcopenia in patients with lipedema has not been investigated before. Early recognition of possible sarcopenia and functional limitations in these patients may be important to increase the ability of patients to participate in physical activity as part of their conservative management.

There is no study in the literature investigating sarcopenia in patients with a diagnosis of lipedema. The aim of this study is to evaluate patients with a diagnosis of lipedema in terms of sarcopenia. In addition, the relationship between sarcopenia and age, body mass index, exercise frequency, lipedema type, and stage will be investigated in patients diagnosed with lipedema.

Conditions

• Lipedema
• Sarcopenia
• Musculoskeletal Diseases

Interventions

DIAGNOSTIC_TEST

STAR-Sonographic Thigh Adjustment Ratio

With ultrasonography, anterior thigh muscle thickness on the dominant extremity side will be measured at a 50% level between the anterior superior iliac spine and the upper pole of the patella in the supine position. The STAR-sonographic thigh adjustment ratio will be calculated by dividing the anterior thigh muscle thickness (mm) by the body mass index.

DIAGNOSTIC_TEST

Hand Grip Strength

Hand grip strength will be measured with a Jamar dynamometer used in the second grip position, in a sitting position with shoulders adducted and neutrally rotated, elbows flexed to 90°, and forearms/wrists in the neutral position. Three repetitive measurements will be made from the dominant side and the maximum value obtained for analysis will be taken.

DIAGNOSTIC_TEST

Chair Stand Test

For the 5-repeat stand-up test, patients will be asked to get up from a chair without an armrest and sit (at the start) five times as fast as possible with their arms crossed over their chest.

DIAGNOSTIC_TEST

6 Meter Gait Speed

For walking speed measurements, patients will be asked to stand with both feet touching the starting line and walk at their normal speed on a 6-meter track after the command. The time between the start and end will be measured with a stopwatch and converted to meters/second. Three consecutive measurements will be made for both and average values will be taken for the analyses.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Dokuz Eylul University

  lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

• Nihan Erdinc Gunduz, M.D. · Dokuz Eylul University

Eligibility

Min Age

18 Years

Max Age

85 Years

Sex

FEMALE

Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2023-01-01

Primary Completion

2025-12-31

Completion

2025-12-31

Countries

• Turkey (Türkiye)

Study Locations