Background: Nowadays in the field of syndromes and diseases associated with age, scientists focus especial attention on the problem of sarcopenia, which combines an increased risk of falls, deterioration of life quality, impaired functional activity, reduced life expectancy and increased mortality of patients. In 2016, sarcopenia has been included in the International Classification of Diseases. There are the primary and secondary forms of sarcopenia.

Objectives: The aim of this study was to evaluate the bone mineral density, lean mass, frequency of pre-sarcopenia and analyze correlation among the activity parameters, duration of the disease, life quality and lean mass indices in women with rheumatoid arthritis.

Methods: 461 women aged 40-87 years (age - 57.17 ± 0.71 years) were examined, among them 71 patients with rheumatoid arthritis and 390 controls. We conducted the clinical and laboratory examination. Pain intensity was evaluated by the visual analogue scale, the quality of life – by the HAQ questionnaire. Lean mass, bone mineral density were measured by the X-ray absorptiometry (Prodigy, GEHC Lunar, Madison, WI, USA). Pre-sarcopenia was determined when an appendicular lean mass index was less than 5.72 kg/m2 (V. Povoroznyuk, N. Dzerovych, 2016).

Results: Patients with rheumatoid arthritis had a significantly lower femoral neck mineral density (p = 0.002), lean mass of the total body (p = 0.01) and appendicular lean mass (p <0.01). We didn’t find any significant connection among the activity parameters (C-reactive protein, ESR, pain VAS, DAS-28), duration of the disease, life quality and lean mass indices in patients with rheumatoid arthritis. However, a significant correlation was found between the number of swollen joints and lean mass of upper limbs (r=0.67; р=0.02).The frequency of pre-sarcopenia in women with rheumatoid arthritis was 49 %, in the control group – 18 %.

Conclusion: Patients with rheumatoid arthritis had not only bone tissue, but also skeletal muscle tissue disorders, resulting in a significant deterioration of functional capacity and quality of life. Given the significant medical and social significance of the problem, further studies into the mechanisms of pathogenesis, development of diagnostic methods, prevention and treatment of sarcopenia in patients with rheumatoid arthritis are required.

Disclosure of Interests: None declared