Relationship between Plasma Ghrelin Levels and XXXX in Elderly Subjects: A Cross-Sectional Study.

@entity1 @entity19264 @entity6288
OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between plasma ghrelin levels and @entity6288 in elderly @entity1 . DESIGN: Cross-sectional study. SETTING: Health consortium medical centers in the Maresme region, Barcelona (Spain). @entity1 : Two groups of subjects: @entity1 >= 70 years (elderly group) and @entity1 25-65 years (young adults). MEASUREMENTS: @entity6288 , diagnosed according to the EWGSOP definition, fasting and postprandial plasma ghrelin levels, body composition, hand grip, Barthel score, and frailty using Fried criteria. RESULTS: Fifty-five elderly subjects and 33 young adults were recruited. In both age groups, mean ghrelin levels were significantly higher in @entity1 than in @entity1 . However, mean ghrelin levels were similar in elderly and young @entity1 (716 vs. 752 pg @entity19264 , P = 0.763) as well as in elderly and young @entity1 (859 vs. 995 pg @entity19264 , P = 0.190). In the elderly group, subjects with @entity6288 showed significantly lower ghrelin levels than those without @entity6288 (650 vs. 899 pg @entity19264 , P = 0.036), but these differences disappeared when stratifying by gender. Elderly subjects without @entity6288 had the same ghrelin levels as young adults (899.3 vs. 899.6 pg @entity19264 ). In young @entity1 , ghrelin levels correlated with fat free mass (rs = 0.58, P = 0.007) and muscular mass (rs = 0.54, P = 0.015) but these correlations were not observed in @entity1 nor in elderly @entity1 . CONCLUSION: This cross-sectional study does not allow a definitive conclusion about the relationship between ghrelin levels and @entity6288 . Further large prospective studies are needed to test this hypothesis.
