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Background: Preoperative loss of skeletal muscle mass, defined as sarcopenia, has been reported to be associated with higher incidence of complications following esophagectomy in patients with esophageal cancer. Although skeletal muscle loss promotes disability and reduced quality of life (QOL), only a few studies have focused on changes in skeletal muscle mass after surgery. This prospective cohort study aimed to evaluate the chronological changes in skeletal muscle mass after minimally invasive esophagectomy (MIE)., Methods: Patients with esophageal cancer scheduled to undergo MIE at our institution were prospectively registered. Skeletal muscle mass was evaluated before and 2, 6, 12, and 24 months after surgery. The effects of preoperative sarcopenia on surgical outcomes and chronological changes in skeletal muscle mass were evaluated., Results: Among the 71 eligible preoperative patients, 29 (40.8%) were diagnosed with sarcopenia. Patients with sarcopenia had significantly higher incidences of total (79.3% vs 52.4%, p = 0.026) and gastrointestinal (37.9% vs 11.9%, p = 0.019) complications and a significantly longer length of hospital stay (31 vs 23 days, p = 0.005) than those without sarcopenia. The median skeletal muscle mass index (kg/m 2 ) was 7.09 before surgery, which decreased to 6.46 two months after surgery (- 7.2%, P < 0.01). Thereafter, values of 6.90, 6.86, and 7.06 were reported at 6, 12, and 24 months after surgery, respectively., Conclusion: Patients with preoperative sarcopenia developed more postoperative complications than those without it. Additionally, patients experienced a decrease in skeletal muscle mass during the early postoperative period following MIE. Further research on perioperative countermeasures to prevent skeletal muscle loss during the early postoperative period and to prevent postoperative complications is necessary for patients undergoing MIE., (© 2021. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.)

Background Sarcopenia (loss of muscle mass) has been shown to be associated with postoperative outcomes following esophagectomy. However, the impact of esophagectomy on postoperative muscle mass and function remains unclear. The prospective study aimed to evaluate the change in muscle mass and physical function after esophagectomy in sarcopenic patients in comparison with nonsarcopenic patients. Methods The subject of the study was patients with cStage I-III primary esophageal cancer who were scheduled to undergo curative esophagectomy. Sarcopenia was diagnosed by measuring preoperative muscle mass with bioelectrical impedance analysis. Physical function was evaluated by measuring grip strength and walking speed. Postoperative muscle mass and function were evaluated between 1 and 3 months after surgery. Perioperative changes in muscle mass and function were compared between patients with and without sarcopenia Results Among all 71 enrolled patients, 30 (41%) had sarcopenia. Sarcopenic patients had significantly lower muscle strength (34 vs 41 kg in male, 21 vs 26 kg in female) and a higher rate of postoperative complications (Clavien-Dindo grade 2 or higher, 77% vs 49%, P  = 0.018) compared to nonsarcopenic patients. Sarcopenic patients had a trend to lose greater amount of grip strength (-10.0% vs -5.6%, P  = 0.10) and walking speed (-8.2% vs -1.1%, P  = 0.18), while muscle mass decreased generally in both sarcopenic and nonsarcopenic patients (-8.0% vs -6.8%, P  = 0.46). Conclusion Sarcopenic patients had a higher risk of postoperative complication and may lose further physical function following esophagectomy. Perioperative interventions such as nutrition exercise therapy should be considered for sarcopenic patients. Disclosure All authors have declared no conflicts of interest. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]