Muscle, Functional Ability and Ageing in Sub-Saharan Africa – MUFASSA
MUFASSA builds on the data collect in WP1 of Fractures-E3 to collect physical measures related to muscle strength and function and blood from participants.
Loss of muscle strength and function is a common manifestation of ageing (known as sarcopenia), which leads to falls and fragility fractures (broken bones from low impact injuries), disability, frailty, and sometimes death. Despite this, little is known about how muscle ages in people living in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), nor the risk factors for muscle loss or the impact on quality of life. We will study three different populations in The Gambia, Zimbabwe and South Africa.
MUFASSA aims to:
- Calculate how commonly muscle strength is impaired, physical functional is limited and muscle loss is experienced.
- Understand to what extent losses in muscle strength and ability reduce the ability to perform activities of daily life, increase the risk of frailty and disability and how these impact quality of life.
- Identify clinical, nutritional and metabolic risk factors for losses muscle function, to inform approaches to reduce future disability, and promote healthy ageing in SSA
Further information: MUFASSA study