Association between Possible Sarcopenia and Fall Risk, Depression, and Quality of Life in Middle-Aged and Older Adults

This study aimed to identify the associations between possible sarcopenia (p-sarcopenia) and fall risk, depression, and quality of life (QOL) in middle-aged (age ≥ 45 years) and older (age ≥ 65 years) adults. In this study, we analyzed a total of 10,181 men and women aged 45-85 years from the initial survey sample of the 2006 Korean Longitudinal Study of Aging. Among middle-aged men (women) adults, fall risk and depression were 4.09 (1.34) and 2.25 (2.05) times higher in the p-sarcopenia group than in the non-possible sarcopenia (np-sarcopenia) group, respectively (<i>p</i> < 0.05). Middle-aged and older men and women all showed low QOL-related scores, especially middle-aged men and women in the p-sarcopenia group (<i>p</i> < 0.05). Therefore, adequate management of sarcopenia is necessary in both older and middle-aged adults to reduce its burden as a public health concern.