Sarcopenia among patients after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation and the impact of chronic graft-versus-host disease

Purpose This study investigated the frequency and characteristics of sarcopenia among patients after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT) with a specific focus on the chronic graft-versus-host disease (cGVHD) population and its association with malnutrition, vitamin D and clinical characteristics. Methods We assessed sarcopenia, vitamin D levels, and nutritional status in 73 patients who underwent allo-HSCT, of which 45 were diagnosed with cGVHD. Sarcopenia was diagnosed according to the European Working Group on Sarcopenia in Older People (EWGSOP) criteria. Results Sarcopenia was diagnosed in 19.2% of patients after allo-HSCT with statistically no significant difference between cGVHD and non-cGVHD patients. The risk factor for sarcopenia was the male gender. Sarcopenia in allo-HSCT patients correlated strongly with malnutrition and with current corticosteroid treatment ( p < 0.005). Among cGVHD patients sarcopenia additionally correlated strongly with the number of prior systemic immunosuppressive therapy lines ( p < 0.005) and moderately with the intensity of immunosuppression, cGVHD severity global rating assessed by both the health care provider and the patient and joint and fascia cGVHD involvement ( p < 0.05). Vitamin D deficiency was found in more than 54.8% of patients, but the correlation to sarcopenia was not found. Conclusion Sarcopenia was found to be common in long term survivors of allo-HSCT independently of the cGVHD diagnosis. Prospective longitudinal studies are needed for a better understanding of factors affecting the development of sarcopenia after allo-HSCT.