Patients with ICU acquired Rapid Muscle Loss at increased risk of mortality, suggests study

A new study published in the Journal of Critical Care showed that individuals with ICU-acquired weakness (ICU-AW) exhibited comparable skeletal muscle mass upon ICU admission but a worse cellular nutritional status when compared to non-ICU-AW patients. Extensive muscular weakness that appears after admission to the intensive care unit is known as intensive care unit-acquired weakness. A poor prognosis is linked to the development of ICU-AW, which results in longer hospital stays, longer mechanical ventilation, and longer ICU stays.

The most recent developments in bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) offer a novel method for determining body composition and nutritional status. Since BIA is non-invasive, portable, affordable, and reproducible, it may be used with critically ill patients more readily than other nutritional evaluations. Prior research has documented correlations between BIA-derived indicators and outcomes in a number of illnesses, including malignant tumors, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and liver cirrhosis.

In order to assess the variations in body composition between patients with and without ICU-acquired weakness at the time of admission, Yoshito Yabe and his team carried out this study. It was anticipated that knowing the function of body composition prior to the emergence of ICU-AW would aid in the identification of possible treatment targets and enhance patient outcomes.

The mixed ICU at Tsukuba Memorial Hospital in Japan served as the site of this single-center, retrospective cohort research. The patients who were able to walk without assistance before admission, who underwent therapy after admission, and who lived for at least 48 hours were included in this study. During ICU admission, bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) was used to determine body composition. The characteristics, results, and body compositions of patients who were divided into ICU-AW and non-ICU-AW groups were compared.

28 (9.9%) of the 282 patients under analysis experienced ICU-AW. The SOFA ratings of ICU-AW patients were higher and they were older. In the ICU-AW group, BIA revealed a lower phase angle and a greater extracellular water to total body water ratio. The skeletal muscle mass was comparable between the groups. Overall, when compared to non-ICU-AW patients, the ICU-AW patients had relatively poor cellular nutritional status but comparable skeletal muscle mass at admission.

Source:

Yabe, Y., Komori, A., Iriyama, H., Ikezawa, K., & Abe, T. (2025). Association between the development of intensive care unit-acquired weakness and body composition at intensive care unit admission: A descriptive study. In Journal of Critical Care (Vol. 85, p. 154933). Elsevier BV. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcrc.2024.154933