What is "sarcopenia"

Etymology 1 n. (context pathology English) gradual age-related loss of skeletal muscle Etymology 2

n. (context pathology Dutch) gradual age-related loss of skeletal muscle; sarcopenia

Sarcopenia (from Greek σάρξ sarx, "flesh" and πενία penia, "poverty") is the degenerative loss of skeletal muscle mass (0.5–1% loss per year after the age of 50), quality, and strength associated with aging. Sarcopenia is a component of the frailty syndrome. It is often a component of cachexia. It can also exist independently of cachexia; whereas cachexia includes malaise and is secondary to an underlying pathosis (such as cancer), sarcopenia may occur in healthy people and does not necessarily include malaise. Starting from October 2016, Sarcopenia will be will be coded in the International Classification of Disease, Tenth Revision, Clinical Modification (ICD-10-CM) under the code of M62.84.