Salivary Testosterone and Cortisol as Biomarkers for the Diagnosis of Sarcopenia and Sarcopenic Obesity in Community-Dwelling Older Adults

Simple Summary Sarcopenia (S) and sarcopenic obesity (SO) are diseases that increasingly affect society and constitute an important part of the pathologies that affect elderly due to the high life expectancies of the current population. The search for accessible, inexpensive, and noninvasive biomarkers that can help diagnose these diseases quickly and easily is a new field that deserves an in-depth study. The aim of this study was to find relationships between salivary cortisol (C) and testosterone (T) levels and these pathologies' appearance in 190 community-dwelling men and women over 65 years old. The results reflect a relationship between salivary T and the age of the participants with differences by sex, and a relationship was found between lower levels of T and a greater presence of S and SO. Despite the significant results obtained, more studies are necessary to determine a potential panel of salivary biomarkers for the study of S and SO. Nowadays, the appearance of sarcopenia (S) or sarcopenic obesity (SO) is related to aging. According to the criteria of the European Working Group on Sarcopenia in Older People (EWGSOP), the feasibility of using salivary cortisol and testosterone levels was analyzed as diagnostic biomarkers of S or SO. One hundred and ninety non-institutionalized people aged >= 65 years were studied, independent of the activities of daily living (ADLs) (Barthel > 60), and sociodemographic variables were determined together with criteria for the diagnosis of S and SO including grip force, lower body strength, appendicular skeletal muscle mass, physical performance, total body fat percentage, body mass index (BMI), waist circumference, and triceps skinfold, together with the levels of salivary cortisol and testosterone. Our results reflected that women presented a higher prevalence of S and SO (21.2% and 30.2%, respectively). A significant difference was observed between salivary testosterone levels and the age of the participants with differences by sex. Testosterone values in men with S and SO were significantly lower (p = 0.043 and p = 0.048, respectively), which suggests a potential use of the biomarker for diagnostic purposes. No significant differences were shown with cortisol values.

Automated summary

This study examined the relationship between salivary cortisol and testosterone levels and the appearance of sarcopenia and sarcopenic obesity, finding a link between lower testosterone levels and the presence of these pathologies. The results suggest a potential use of testosterone as a diagnostic biomarker for these conditions, although further research is needed to establish a panel of salivary biomarkers.