Interest of a Tongue Strength Measurement in the Screening for Sarcopenia in Hospitalized Elderly Patients

Sarcopenia is a syndrome characterized by a progressive and generalized loss of skeletal muscle mass, strength and function that increases the risk of physical dependence, impaired quality of life and mortality. This is a major public health problem. Indeed, its prevalence has been estimated at 63.8% for elderly patients hospitalized in acute geriatric unit.

Several methods of sarcopenia screening exist at present. The European Working Group on Sarcopenia in Older People (EWGSOP) proposes to carry out three examinations for the diagnosis of sarcopenia: the Dual-Energy X-ray Absorptiometry (DEXA) test and two motor tests (walking speed and hand test). These measurements have already been evaluated and validated. They are reliable, inexpensive and easily achievable in clinical routine.

Recent studies have shown that decreased muscle mass and / or strength could be associated with dysphagia. Indeed, many muscles of the head and neck are simultaneously solicited for swallowing coordination. This suggests that a reduction in the mass or strength of these muscles could impact the swallowing function. The investigator's hypothesize that loss of lingual muscle strength may be associated with sarcopenia. The study will measure the tongue strength using the Iowa Oral Performance Instrument (IOPI) in a geriatric population with or without sarcopenia.

• Determine the incidence of lingual hypotonia in hospitalized elderly sarcopenia patients.
• To compare the sensitivity, the specificity of the measurement of the force of the tongue with the usual measures proposed by the EWGSOP in the context of screening for sarcopenia.

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Sarcopenia
• Intervention / Treatment: Device: Tongue strength measurement; Procedure: Blood sampling; Diagnostic test: Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE); Diagnostic test: Minimal nutritional assessment (MNA-SF); Diagnostic test: Dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (DEXA); Device: Dynamometer (Hand grip ); Diagnostic test: Walking speed

• Study Type: Observational
• Enrollment (Actual): 110

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• Belgium
  • Brussels, Belgium
    • CHU Brugmann

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 65 years and older (Older Adult)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No
• Genders Eligible for Study: All

• Sampling Method: Non-Probability Sample

Study Population

Patients hospitalized in an acute geriatric unit within the CHU Brugmann.

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

Patients hospitalized in an acute geriatric unit within the CHU Brugmann.

Exclusion Criteria:

None

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Observational Models: Cohort
• Time Perspectives: Prospective

Number of groups / cohorts

2

Cohorts and Interventions

Group / Cohort	Intervention / Treatment
Sarcopenia; Elderly patients with sarcopenia	Device: Tongue strength measurement; The Iowa Oral Performance Instrument is a validated device for assessing the strength of the tongue. This involves placing the tip of a tube in the mouth and asking the patient to exert pressure on it.; Procedure: Blood sampling; Blood sampling; Diagnostic test: Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE); Also called Folstein test, it is an assessment of the patient cognitive and memory functions. It detects cognitive disorders or dementia. The MMSE is quickly realizable and explores several cognitive functions through 30 questions divided into 7 items.; Diagnostic test: Minimal nutritional assessment (MNA-SF); The minimal nutritional assessment - short form is a simple, non - invasive and validated scale for the detection of malnutrition in the elderly patient.; Diagnostic test: Dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (DEXA); Dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (DEXA) is the imaging technique recommended for the diagnosis of sarcopenia.; Device: Dynamometer (Hand grip ); By placing a dynamometer in the patient's hand and asking him to apply maximum pressure to it, the muscular strength of the extremities of the limbs is estimated.; Diagnostic test: Walking speed; Walking speed evaluates the muscular performance. The seated patient must get up and walk a distance of 6 meters as quickly as possible without the help of a third party.
Control; Elderly patients without sarcopenia	Device: Tongue strength measurement; The Iowa Oral Performance Instrument is a validated device for assessing the strength of the tongue. This involves placing the tip of a tube in the mouth and asking the patient to exert pressure on it.; Procedure: Blood sampling; Blood sampling; Diagnostic test: Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE); Also called Folstein test, it is an assessment of the patient cognitive and memory functions. It detects cognitive disorders or dementia. The MMSE is quickly realizable and explores several cognitive functions through 30 questions divided into 7 items.; Diagnostic test: Minimal nutritional assessment (MNA-SF); The minimal nutritional assessment - short form is a simple, non - invasive and validated scale for the detection of malnutrition in the elderly patient.; Diagnostic test: Dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (DEXA); Dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (DEXA) is the imaging technique recommended for the diagnosis of sarcopenia.; Device: Dynamometer (Hand grip ); By placing a dynamometer in the patient's hand and asking him to apply maximum pressure to it, the muscular strength of the extremities of the limbs is estimated.; Diagnostic test: Walking speed; Walking speed evaluates the muscular performance. The seated patient must get up and walk a distance of 6 meters as quickly as possible without the help of a third party.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Tongue strength	The Iowa Oral Performance Instrument is a validated device for assessing the strength of the tongue. This involves placing the tip of a tube in the mouth and asking the patient to exert pressure on it. Thus, a pressure measurement expressed in kPa makes it possible to objectify the tongue strength.	6 months

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Pre-Albumin concentration	Albumin and pre-albumin are biological markers for undernutrition. Pre-albumin is an earlier marker than albumin because of its shorter half-life, 48 hours versus 21 days. The normal pre-albumin values are between 200 and 400 mg /L, undernutrition is serious if it is less than 150mg/dL.	6 months
Albumin concentration	Albumin and pre-albumin are biological markers for undernutrition. Pre-albumin is an earlier marker than albumin because of its shorter half-life, 48 hours versus 21 days.The normal values of albumin are between 40 and 45g/L, between 30 and 35g/L there is moderate undernutrition and under 30g/L it is severe undernutrition.	6 months
Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE) score	Also called Folstein test, it is an assessment of the patient cognitive and memory functions. It detects cognitive disorders or dementia. The MMSE is quickly realizable and explores several cognitive functions through 30 questions divided into 7 items: Orientation ability - Learning and transcription skills - Attention and calculation skills - Memory retention capacity - Language and naming capability - Constructive Praxy. A MMSE score over 27 indicates normal cognitive functions (maximum: 29). A MMSE score between 24 and 27 indicates mild cognitive impairment. A MMSE score under 24 indicates dementia.	6 months
Minimal nutritional assessment (MNA-SF) score	The minimal nutritional assessment - short form is a simple, non - invasive and validated scale for the detection of malnutrition in the elderly patient. It takes into account the patient's loss of appetite, weight loss, motor skills, recent health status, neuropsychological disorders The maximum score of the MNA-SF is 14: Greater than or equal to 11: normal nutritional status.; Between 8 and 11: risk of malnutrition.; Less than 8: proven malnutrition.	6 months
Skeletal Mass Muscle Index	Dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (DEXA) is the imaging technique recommended for the diagnosis of sarcopenia. It gives minimal irradiation and gives an adequate estimate of the appendicular muscle mass (ALM). By dividing the ALM by the size in centimeters, we obtain the Skeletal Mass Muscle Index (SMI). SMI values below 2 standard deviations from the mean point towards sarcopenia.	6 months
Hand grip strength	By placing a dynamometer in the patient's hand and asking him to apply maximum pressure to it, the muscular strength of the extremities of the limbs is estimated.	6 months
Walking speed	Walking speed evaluates the muscular performance. The seated patient must get up and walk a distance of 6 meters as quickly as possible without the help of a third party. It has been shown that there is a non-linear relationship between walking speed and muscle strength.	6 months

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Murielle Surquin
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Alexandrine de Buck van Overstraeten, MD, CHU Brugmann

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): February 7, 2018
• Primary Completion (Actual): January 1, 2019
• Study Completion (Actual): January 1, 2019

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: January 25, 2018
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: January 25, 2018
• First Posted (Actual): January 31, 2018

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): April 4, 2019
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: April 2, 2019
• Last Verified: April 1, 2019

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: Sarcopenia; Tongue strength
• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Nervous System Diseases; Neurologic Manifestations; Neuromuscular Manifestations; Pathological Conditions, Anatomical; Muscular Atrophy; Atrophy; Sarcopenia
• Other Study ID Numbers: CHUB-sarcopenia-tongue

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: No

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No