BACKGROUND: Stroke survivors have less muscle mass in their paretic limbs compared with nonparetic limbs, which may or may not be accompanied by changes in regional and/or whole body fat mass. AIM: To examine the current evidence regarding differences in regional fat mass between paretic and nonparetic limbs and changes in whole body fat mass over time in stroke survivors. METHODS: A systematic search of relevant databases. Studies measuring whole body or regional fat mass using dual-energy X-ray absorpiometry, computed tomography, or magnetic resonance imaging were included. RESULTS: Eleven trials were identified. Fat mass differences between paretic and nonparetic limbs and change in fat mass over time were not consistent. Meta-analyses were conducted using dual-energy X-ray absorpiometry-derived data from 10 trials (n = 324). There were no differences in fat mass between paretic and nonparetic legs (pooled mean difference 31·4 g, 95% confidence interval -33·9 to 96·6, P = 0·35), and slightly greater fat mass in the paretic arms compared with nonparetic arms (pooled mean difference 84·0 g, 95% confidence interval 30·7 to 137·3, P = 0·002). Whole body fat mass did not increase significantly between one-month and six-months poststroke (pooled mean difference 282·3 g, 95% confidence interval -824·4 to 1389, P = 0·62), but there was an increase between six- and 12 months poststroke (pooled mean difference 1935 g, 95% confidence interval 1031 to 2839, P < 0·001). CONCLUSIONS: There were inconsistent findings regarding changes in fat mass after stroke. Large, well-designed studies are required to further investigate the impact of body composition changes on the health of stroke survivors.
BACKGROUND:Stroke survivors have less muscle mass in their paretic limbs compared with nonparetic limbs, which may or may not be accompanied by changes in regional and/or whole body fat mass. AIM: To examine the current evidence regarding differences in regional fat mass between paretic and nonparetic limbs and changes in whole body fat mass over time in stroke survivors. METHODS: A systematic search of relevant databases. Studies measuring whole body or regional fat mass using dual-energy X-ray absorpiometry, computed tomography, or magnetic resonance imaging were included. RESULTS: Eleven trials were identified. Fat mass differences between paretic and nonparetic limbs and change in fat mass over time were not consistent. Meta-analyses were conducted using dual-energy X-ray absorpiometry-derived data from 10 trials (n = 324). There were no differences in fat mass between paretic and nonparetic legs (pooled mean difference 31·4 g, 95% confidence interval -33·9 to 96·6, P = 0·35), and slightly greater fat mass in the paretic arms compared with nonparetic arms (pooled mean difference 84·0 g, 95% confidence interval 30·7 to 137·3, P = 0·002). Whole body fat mass did not increase significantly between one-month and six-months poststroke (pooled mean difference 282·3 g, 95% confidence interval -824·4 to 1389, P = 0·62), but there was an increase between six- and 12 months poststroke (pooled mean difference 1935 g, 95% confidence interval 1031 to 2839, P < 0·001). CONCLUSIONS: There were inconsistent findings regarding changes in fat mass after stroke. Large, well-designed studies are required to further investigate the impact of body composition changes on the health of stroke survivors.
Authors: Michael Knops; Claudia G Werner; Nadja Scherbakov; Jochen Fiebach; Jens P Dreier; Andreas Meisel; Peter U Heuschmann; Gerd J Jungehülsing; Stephan von Haehling; Ulrich Dirnagl; Stefan D Anker; Wolfram Doehner Journal: J Cachexia Sarcopenia Muscle Date: 2013-03-13 Impact factor: 12.910