Abstract
BACKGROUND: Intestinal dysbiosis was considered a pivotal pathological mechanism underlying sarcopenia. Despite the fervor surrounding research in this domain, substantial controversy persists regarding the obtained outcomes. OBJECTIVE: To systematically summarized the disparities in gut microbiota composition between the group afflicted by sarcopenia and non-sarcopenia controls. METHODS: PubMed, Medline, CINAHL, EMBASE, Scopus, Web of Science and Google Scholer, Cochrane Library and gray literature sources were systematically searched for in randomized controlled trials. Meta-analysis and random-effects meta-regression were conducted using Rev. Man 5.3. Overall effect was measured using Hedges's g and determined using Z-statistics. Cochran's Q test and I (2) were used to investigate heterogeneity. The Newcastle-Ottawa Scale was used to assess overall quality of evidence. RESULTS: Ten studies, including 421 cases of sarcopenia and 1,642 cases of controls, were included in the meta-analysis. Patients with sarcopenia showed significantly reduced gut microbiota in α diversity, and β diversity was significantly different in 8/9 of included studies. We also found more abundance of phylum Proteobacteria and genus Escherichia-Shigella, and less abundance of phylum Firmicutes and genus Faecalibacterium, Prevotella 9, Blautia in the sarcopenia group. CONCLUSION: The gut microbiota composition in patients with sarcopenia has undergone alterations, serving as a fundamental reference for further investigation into the potential pathogenic mechanisms and treatment strategies for sarcopenia.