Long-term administration of ninjin'yoeito to treat frailty in older adults: A case series

Frailty among older people is strongly associated with undernutrition and is likely to cause sarcopenia, which results in a reduction in muscle mass. Although several studies have investigated the benefits of diet changes and exercise therapy in reducing frailty in older adults, few have focused on the use of drug therapy to treat frailty. We report on three cases of older adults (2: female and 1: male) who presented at our clinic with frailty. Their demographics, grip strength, and muscle quality scores were measured at baseline, and they were administered ninjin'yoeito and followed up at 6, 12, and 24 months. Patient 1 was an 82-year-old man with a grip strength of 16.00 kg on the left and a muscle quality score of 35 points. After 24 months, his grip strength was 21.40 kg on the left, and he had a muscle quality score of 47 points. Similarly, despite serious underlying diseases, at each follow-up, the other two patients showed marked improvement in grip strength, and their muscle quality score either increased or remained stable. These results indicate that ninjin'yoeito has considerable potential for improving frailty and sarcopenia in older patients.