Sarcopenia and frailty. Consequences and preventive interventions

Frailty and sarcopenia are central concepts in geriatric medicine, reflecting the progressive vulnerability, functional decline, and adverse health outcomes that may occur during ageing. While frailty describes a broader vulnerable state in which older adults have reduced physiological reserve and limited ability to cope with stressors, sarcopenia refers more specifically to impaired muscle health, characterized by reduced muscle mass and reduced muscle strength.

This webinar explores the ageing trajectory from preserved function to deconditioning, sarcopenia, frailty, disability, and mortality. It highlights the clinical importance of identifying frailty and sarcopenia early, as both conditions are associated with increased risks of falls, disability, hospitalization, poor quality of life, and mortality.

Special attention is given to operational definitions of frailty, including the physical frailty phenotype based on slowness, weakness, exhaustion, unintentional weight loss, and low physical activity. The lecture also reviews the modern diagnostic concept of sarcopenia, emphasizing that muscle function and strength are as important as muscle mass.

The session further discusses preventive and therapeutic strategies, including multidomain interventions targeting physical activity, nutrition, cognitive training, vascular and metabolic risk factors, geriatric syndromes, and polypharmacy. Evidence from major intervention studies is presented to show how structured exercise, adequate protein intake, nutritional supplementation, and comprehensive geriatric approaches may support physical function, cognitive performance, and quality of life in older adults.

By connecting biological ageing, muscle health, functional reserve, and clinical outcomes, this session provides clinicians with a practical framework for recognizing, preventing, and managing frailty and sarcopenia in older adults.

*Provided by International Association of Gerontology & Geriatrics (IAGG) & Federation of Geriatric Education (FGE)

Speakers

• Liang Kung Chen, MD

Learning objectives

• Differentiate between frailty and sarcopenia in the context of ageing and geriatric medicine.
• Describe the ageing trajectory from deconditioning and sarcopenia to frailty, disability, and mortality.
• Recognize key clinical features of physical frailty, including slowness, weakness, exhaustion, unintentional weight loss, and low activity.
• Explain why modern sarcopenia diagnosis requires assessment of both muscle mass and muscle strength.
• Identify evidence-based preventive strategies for frailty and sarcopenia, including multidomain intervention, resistance and aerobic exercise, adequate protein intake, and nutritional supplementation.