ArticleExperimental gerontology2023
Elevated plasma CAF22 are incompletely restored six months after COVID-19 infection in older men.
Article in Experimental gerontology, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 16 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
16 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 28 citations in OpenAlex.
- C-Terminal Agrin Fragment as a Biomarker for Sarcopenia: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Journal of cachexia, sarcopenia and muscle · 2025Pooled it
- Probiotics Supplements Improve the Sarcopenia-Related Quality of Life in Older Adults with Age-Related Muscle Decline.Calcified tissue international · 2024Trial
- Dysregulated Resolution of Inflammation After Respiratory Viral Infections: Molecular Pathways Linking Neuroinflammation to Post-Viral Neuropathic Pain-A Narrative Review.International journal of molecular sciences · 2025Review
- Post-COVID Condition and Neuroinflammation: Possible Management with Antioxidants.Antioxidants (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Review
- Association of Vitamin D Supplementation with Glutathione Peroxidase (GPx) Activity, Interleukine-6 (IL-6) Levels, and Anxiety and Depression Scores in Patients with Post-COVID-19 Condition.International journal of molecular sciences · 2025Article
- Novel biomarkers of mitochondrial dysfunction in Long COVID patients.GeroScience · 2025Article
- The Interface of a Leaky Gut with Reduced Sarcopenia-Related Quality of Life (SarQoL) in Patients with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease.International journal of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease · 2025Article
- Mitochondrial dysfunction in long COVID: mechanisms, consequences, and potential therapeutic approaches.GeroScience · 2024Review
- Tracking the Plasma C-Terminal Agrin Fragment as a Biomarker of Neuromuscular Decline in 18- to 87-Year-Old Men.Molecular diagnosis & therapy · 2024Article
- Preliminary Study on the Restoration of the Phospholipid Profile in Serum from Patients with COVID-19 by Treatment with Vitamin E.Current issues in molecular biology · 2024Article
- Lipid-Lowering Medications are Associated with Reduced Sarcopenia-Related Quality of Life in Older Adults with Hyperlipidemia.Drugs & aging · 2024Article
- A leaky gut contributes to reduced sarcopenia-related quality of life (SarQoL) in geriatric older adults.Quality of life research : an international journal of quality of life aspects of treatment, care and rehabilitation · 2024Article
- The Pathology of Intestinal Mucosal Disruption; Implications for Muscle Loss and Physical Dependency from Late Adolescence to Octogenarians.International journal of general medicine · 2024Article
- Aging mitochondria in the context of SARS-CoV-2: exploring interactions and implications.Frontiers in aging · 2024Review
- Frailty after COVID-19: The wave after?Aging medicine (Milton (N.S.W)) · 2023Review
- Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
4 authors at 2 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
introductionThe long-term complications of COVID-19 appear as significant health problems. However, the long-term muscle decline in these patients is poorly characterized.
methodsWe investigated the age-related muscle decline, termed sarcopenia, before and following the COVID-19 infection in older male patients (n = 87). We evaluated handgrip strength (HGS) and functional capacity (short physical performance battery; SPPB) in COVID-19 patients 7-42 days before and one week and 6-month after COVID-19 infection. We used ELISA tests to measure plasma c-terminal agrin fragment-22 (CAF22), c-reactive protein (CRP), and 8-isoprostanes as markers of degraded neuromuscular junctions, inflammation, and oxidative stress, respectively.
resultsBefore the COVID-19 infection, 54 patients were non-sarcopenic, and 25 patients were sarcopenic, while eight patients subsequently developed sarcopenia. All patients exhibited reduced HGS and SPPB, while elevated CAF22, CRP, and 8-isoprostane levels one week post-COVID-19 infection (all p < 0.05). At six months post-COVID-19 infection, the HGS, SPPB, CAF22, CRP, and 8-isoprostanes were partly restored to baseline levels (all p < 0.05). Correlation analysis revealed that the plasma CAF22 had a significant correlation with HGS, SPPB, and COVID-19 disease severity. CAF22 also demonstrated significant areas under the curves in diagnosing sarcopenia at all three time-points.
conclusionAltogether, the muscle detriment due to COVID-19 persists six months post-infection, and plasma CAF22 may be helpful to detect muscle and functional decline in these patients. Timely evaluation and intervention of sarcopenia may be critical in COVID-19 treatment.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.