Muscle Weakness

About Muscle Weakness

There are many reasons why individuals may lose strength, but in many patients with chronic heart, lung or kidney diseases the loss of muscle mass and strength is faster than normal. These changes make symptoms of breathlessness worse, and contribute to loss of independence and reduced quality-of-life. Loss of muscle mass in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is associated with an earlier death than in those who are able to maintain muscle mass.

People naturally lose strength over time, and reductions in physical activity or participation in exercise training are contributors to this loss. However, muscle function also occurs due to an age-related loss in the amount of muscle and/or the ability of the available muscle to generate its expected force, combined termed “sarcopenia”. In some chronic conditions, more extreme loss of both the body’s muscle and fat can occur unintentionally; this is termed “cachexia”. Cachexia is perhaps most commonly associated with cancer, but cachexia is also common in COPD and chronic kidney disease. Treatments for sarcopenia and cachexia focus on exercise training, nutrition, appetite stimulants and nutrition, and anabolic medications.

Our Research

Investigators at the Respiratory Research Center have been at the forefront of combating muscle weakness, especially in COPD patients. We have conducted randomized clinical trials to evaluate the efficacy of several approaches including exercise training, appetite stimulation, testosterone, selective androgen receptor modulators (SARMs), troponin activators and myostatin inhibitors.

Qualified research participants will receive financial compensation for their time and travel, study-related medical evaluations, and the investigative study medication at no cost. Help advance medicine and medical research through participating in one of our clinical trials.

Other Resources

Learn more about COPD and the current research

Respiratory Research Center

Our Research Contributions

  • Established the benefit of testosterone supplementation, with and without exercise training, on muscle mass and strength in male COPD patients
  • Established the benefit of SARMs, combined with a home exercise program, on muscle mass and strength in male and female COPD patients with lower limb weakness
  • Established the benefit of myostatin inhibitors in male and female COPD patients with low body mass index
  • Showed that an appetite stimulant was effective in increasing body weight in underweight COPD patients

More of Our Research Specialties

  • Unexplained Dyspnea & Exercise Intolerance

    Shortness-of-breath, or Dyspnea, is a common symptom that causes exercise limitation or “intolerance”. Breathlessness during exercise is often

  • Pulmonary Hypertension

    Pulmonary Hypertension (PH)  is a disease of high blood pressure in your pulmonary artery. This is the large artery that leaves the heart and goes to your lungs.