Open AccessTongue thickness in health vs cirrhosis of the liver: Prospective observational study
Author(s) -
Manish Tandon,
Harshita Singh,
Nishant Singla,
Priyanka Jain,
Chandra Kant Pandey
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
world journal of gastrointestinal pharmacology and therapeutics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
ISSN - 2150-5349
DOI - 10.4292/wjgpt.v11.i3.59
Subject(s) - medicine , sarcopenia , cirrhosis , tongue , liver disease , observational study , malnutrition , model for end stage liver disease , prospective cohort study , radiology , gastroenterology , nuclear medicine , pathology , liver transplantation , transplantation
Malnutrition affects 40%-90% of patients with cirrhosis of the liver. L3 skeletal muscle index (L3SMI) is presently accepted as the most objective and quantitative measure available for sarcopenia, a surrogate marker of malnutrition. L3SMI application is, however, limited by non-availability of computed tomography scanning in remote areas, cost, need for extensive training, and the risk of exposure to radiation. Therefore, an alternative dependable measure with wider availability is needed. Malnutrition causes sarcopenia not only in skeletal muscles but also in other muscular structures such as the psoas muscle, diaphragm and tongue. We therefore hypothesised that the tongue, being easily accessible for inspection and for measurement of thickness using ultrasonography, may be used to document sarcopenia.