EULO v01
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Pilot study: Endometabolic determinants of Unintentional weight Loss and frailty in Old age
IRAS ID
232845
Contact name
Earn H Gan
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals Foundation Trust
Duration of Study in the UK
0 years, 8 months, 0 days
Research summary
People are living longer and while some people remain healthy, others can lose weight involuntarily and become frail. People who are frail often have weaker muscles, which increase the risk of falls and disabilities. Apart from frailty, unintentional weight loss also increases the risk of cognitive decline in later life. While the causes of unintentional weight loss are accountable in some people, we have yet to understand why this happens in 25% of older people. The purpose of our study is to investigate if changes in body hormones could contribute to unintentional weight loss. Ageing is related to alterations in hormones in our body, particularly thyroid and appetite-regulating hormones, which could affect our weight, appetite and energy expenditure. We would like to work with groups of older people to understand the contribution of these age-related hormonal changes to unintentional weight loss and frailty. We will perform a small pilot study involving 10 community-dwelling women aged 65 years or more, with half the group having unintentional weight loss (4.5kg or 5% weight loss). They will be screened at their GP surgeries and attend the Newcastle Clinical Research Facility (CRF) twice. Participants with active cancer or illnesses, depression, dementia or thyroid diseases will be excluded. The visits to CRF involves blood tests, 6-meter timed walk, investigations of their muscle strength, energy expenditure and intake, metabolic rate, functional capacity and body composition. They will wear a portable activity monitor for 7 days. Their energy intake will be assessed on a separate day, with breakfast, lunch and dinner provided. This study will help us understand the mechanism of unintentional weight loss in otherwise healthy older people, which might be directly treatable with medical therapy. This may also help to form strategies that could prevent frailty and cognitive decline in older people.
REC name
North East - Newcastle & North Tyneside 1 Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
17/NE/0387
Date of REC Opinion
22 Dec 2017
REC opinion
Unfavourable Opinion