| Objective To investigate the screening value of the Osteoporosis Self-Assessment Tool for Asians (OSTA) and calf circumference (CC) for sarcopenia in elderly individuals. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted, enrolling 950 patients aged from 60 to 99 years old under long-term follow-up at the Geriatrics Department of our hospital from January 2021 to December 2023. General clinical data were collected, the OSTA index was calculated, and sarcopenia was assessed. Statistical analyses included independent non-parametric tests, receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves, overall agreement rates, and Kappa values. Results (1) The prevalence of sarcopenia in this study was 35.50 % in males and 33.86 % in females. The 80-99 age group had a significantly higher sarcopenia rate than the 60-79 age group (P<0.001), with lower OSTA index, CC, appendicular skeletal muscle mass index (ASMI), grip strength, and gait speed (P<0.001). (2) In the OSTA high-risk group, sarcopenia prevalence was 81.18 % in males and 53.95 % in females, respectively. In the low CC group, it was 64.20 % in males and 55.77 % in females, respectively. (3) In the 60-79 age group, the area under the curve (AUC) of OSTA was higher than that of CC (males: 0.929 vs 0.885; females: 0.863 vs 0.856), with a more pronounced advantage in the 80-99 age group (males: 0.906 vs 0.816; females: 0.839 vs 0.816). The optimal CC cutoff values were 33.5 cm for males and 32.5 cm for females, respectively. The AUC of CC in the 80-99 age group was lower than in the 60-79 group (males: 0.816 vs 0.885; females: 0.816 vs 0.856). (4) OSTA index showed higher overall agreement (77.78 %-85.88 %) and Kappa values (0.460-0.648) than CC (72.22 %-84.18 %, Kappa 0.378-0.597). (5) When combined, serial testing improved agreement to 82.05 %-91.53 % (Kappa 0.524-0.734), while parallel testing achieved a sensitivity of 0.952-0.982. Conclusion The OSTA index demonstrates superior screening efficacy for sarcopenia in the elderly compared to CC. Their combined use further enhances diagnostic accuracy. |