OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of lean body mass analysis using dual energy x-ray absorptiometry (DEXA) for diagnosis of sarcopenia. METHODS: The literature review covered the period from 29 January 2015 to 5 March 2005, and eight Korean databases and foreign databases including Ovid-MEDLINE, EMBASE, and Cochrane Library were used. 25 studies of using DEXA were included in the final assessment. Two reviewers independently assessed the quality of the included studies and extracted data. The quality of the studies was assessed according to the Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network (SIGN) tool. RESULTS: The effectiveness of lean body mass analysis using DEXA was assessed by means of correlation with comparators, relevance with clinical symtoms and forecasting of the prognosis. The correlation with comparators(MRI, CT, bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA), anthropometry) took different positions. The risk ratio (RR) or odds ratio (OR) of the decrease in physical functions was 0.57~2.48, the RR of osteoporosis was 1.15~9.4. The HR of death was 1.24~3.12, the OR of cardiovascular disease was 1.768, the RR of survival was 0.85. CONCLUSIONS: Lean body mass analysis using DEXA for diagnosis of sarcopenia seems promising but more studies are needed to clarify diagnostic criteria of sarcopenia and cut-off of DEXA.