Detecting Sarcopenia Risk by Diabetes Clustering: A Japanese Prospective Cohort Study

Context Previous studies have assessed the usefulness of data-driven clustering for predicting complications in patients with diabetes mellitus. However, whether the diabetes clustering is useful in predicting sarcopenia remains unclear. Objective To evaluate the predictive power of diabetes clustering for the incidence of sarcopenia in a prospective Japanese cohort. Design Three-year prospective cohort study, Setting and Patients We recruited Japanese patients with type 1 or type 2 diabetes mellitus (n = 659) between January 2018 and February 2020 from the Fukushima Diabetes, Endocrinology, and Metabolism cohort. Interventions Kaplan-Meier and Cox proportional hazards models were used to measure the predictive values of the conventional and clustering-based classification of diabetes mellitus for the onset of sarcopenia. Sarcopenia was diagnosed according to the Asian Working Group for Sarcopenia (AWGS) 2019 consensus update. Main Outcome Measures Onset of sarcopenia. Results Cluster analysis of a Japanese population revealed 5 diabetes clusters: cluster 1 [severe autoimmune diabetes (SAID)], cluster 2 [severe insulin-deficient diabetes (SIDD)], cluster 3 (severe insulin-resistant diabetes, cluster 4 (mild obesity-related diabetes), and cluster 5 (mild age-related diabetes). At baseline, 38 (6.5%) patients met the AWGS sarcopenia criteria, and 55 had newly developed sarcopenia within 3 years. The SAID and SIDD clusters were at high risk of developing sarcopenia after correction for known risk factors. Conclusions This study reveals that among the 5 diabetes clusters, the SAID and SIDD clusters are at a high risk for developing sarcopenia. Clustering-based stratification may be beneficial for predicting and preventing sarcopenia in patients with diabetes.

Automated summary

This study found that patients with severe autoimmune diabetes and severe insulin-deficient diabetes had a higher risk of developing sarcopenia in the Japanese population. Clustering-based stratification may be beneficial for predicting and preventing sarcopenia in patients with diabetes.