Background: Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) is a condition linked to several adverse health consequences, including metabolic disturbances that impact skeletal muscles. Sarcopenia, characterized by skeletal muscle loss, is commonly observed in individuals with MASLD.Our study aims to identify modifiable lifestyle factors associated with Sarcopenia among patients with MASLD. Methods: This study is cross-sectional and carried out at three clinics in Nablus. One hundred sixty-two adults diagnosed with MASLD were recruited for the study. The patients were interviewed and instructed to provide necessary information including sociodemographic factors, medical and surgical histories, lifestyle information, MASLD-related data, and nutritional and functional status. Sarcopenia was defined using the Foundation for the National Institutes of Health (FNIH) criteria, which includes the weight skeletal muscle index (WSMI) with the cut-off score (male: 35.7% and female: 30.7%). Statistical analysis was conducted using SPSS v.21. The chi-square or independent sample t-test was utilized to identify the factors linked to Sarcopenia in the study sample.Results: Our data found 44% of MASLD patients had Sarcopenia, which was significantly associated with female gender (p<0.0001), older age (p<0.0001), presence of chronic diseases (p<0.035), and medication use (p<0.05). Regarding nutritional factors, Sarcopenia had a significant association with obesity, higher body fat percentage, high waist-to-hip ratio, low mid-upper arm circumference, and calf circumference (p<0.001). Sarcopenic individuals are evidenced by reduced hand grip strength.Lifestyle characteristics, a history of smoking and the type of smoking were found to be positively associated with Sarcopenia (p < 0.0001). Conclusion: Sarcopenia is prevalent in the study population and is linked to modifiable risk factors that can be managed to reduce its progression. Additional studies using different study designs, such as longitudinal design, are recommended to identify Sarcopenia determinants. Intervention studies are also required to improve MASLD patients' nutritional and functional status.

Title

Frontiers in Medicine

Publisher

Frontiers Media.

Publisher Country

Switzerland

Indexing

Scopus

Impact Factor

3.1

Publication Type

Online only

Volume

12

Year

2025

Pages

10