Association between arthritis and hand grip strength indices combined with anthropometry in an older Korean population

Grip Strength, Anthropometric Indices, and Their Combination in Screening for Metabolic Syndrome in the Korean Population

Background: Metabolic syndrome (MS) is a cluster of cardiometabolic risk factors for future diabetes and cardiovascular diseases, and low grip strength (GS) is associated with an increased risk of MS. However, the index (among absolute GS, relative GS, and anthropometric indices) that is more strongly associated with MS has not been conclusively identified. Therefore, the objective of the present study was to simultaneously examine the associations of MS with relative and absolute GS and anthropometric indices in a Korean population. Methods: In this large-scale cross-sectional study, we used data from the Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES). A total of 20,915 subjects were included in the statistical analyses. Complex sample binary logistic regression models were used to analyze the associations between MS and indices such as the waist-to-height ratio (WHtR), body mass index (BMI), and absolute and relative GS. Results: The prevalence of MS was 40.48% in men and 34.4% in women. The mean GS values in the healthy group and MS group were 38.06 ± 0.13 and 38.06 ± 0.15 years for men (p = 0.980) and 22.72 ± 0.07 and 21.19 ± 0.11 years for women (p < 0.001), respectively. Among all the indices, the WHtR was the index most strongly associated with MS in men. Among the GS indices, the GS/weight index was closely associated with MS, and the magnitude of this association was stronger than that of the absolute GS index. In women, the WHtR was the most related index to MS among all the indices. Among the GS indices, the GS/weight and GS/BMI indices were strongly associated with MS, and the magnitudes of these associations were much greater than those of the absolute GS index. Conclusions: Although absolute and relative GS indices are strongly associated with MS in the Korean population, the strongest association was observed for the simple anthropometric index (WHtR).

Low hand grip strength as an indicator of depression in the Korean population: a large-scale cross-sectional study

Background

Depression is one of the leading global mental health problems, and hand grip strength (HGS) is associated with depression. However, there have been no studies assessing the association between depression and relative HGS indices combined with waist circumference (WC) and the waist-to-height ratio (WHtR). The objective of this study was to examine the association of depression with absolute and relative HGS indices.

Methods

This was a cross-sectional study based on the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey from 2014 to 2019. A total of 20,649 participants (8,959 men, 43.4% and 11,690 women, 56.6%) were included. The associations between depression and the HGS indices were analyzed through complex sample binary logistic regression models, which were adjusted for age in Model 1 and various covariates in Model 2.

Results

The prevalence of depression was 4.58%, with rates of 2.29% for men and 6.34% for women. The prevalence of depression in women was 2.76 times greater than that in men. In men, the mean HGS values in the dominant hand were 35.48 ± 0.75 kg in the depression group and 38.73 ± 0.11 kg in the non-depression group; in women, they were 21.37 ± 0.22 kg in the depression group and 22.77 ± 0.07 kg in the non-depression group. In men, relative HGS indices as HGS/WC, HGS/body mass index, and HGS/WHtR were more strongly associated with depression than were the absolute HGS indices; however, in women, the associations were similar for both absolute and relative HGS indices. The magnitude of the association was greater for men than for women. In both sexes, all the anthropometric indices had a lower association with depression than did the HGS indices.

Conclusion

Low absolute and relative HGS were negatively associated with depression in the Korean population. But, relative HGS indices were more strongly associated with depression than were absolute HGS and anthropometric indices in men but not in women.

Association of relative hand grip strength with myocardial infarction and angina pectoris in the Korean population: a large-scale cross-sectional study

BACKGROUND

Low hand grip strength (HGS) is associated with the risk of cardiovascular diseases, but the association between HGS and myocardial infarction/angina pectoris (MIAP) is unclear. Furthermore, there have been no studies examining the associations of MIAP with anthropometric indices, absolute HGS indices, and relative HGS indices calculated by dividing absolute HGS values by body mass index (BMI), waist circumference (WC), waist-to-height ratio (WHtR), or weight values. Therefore, the objective of this study was to examine the associations of MIAP with absolute and relative HGS combined with several anthropometric indices.

METHODS

In this large-scale cross-sectional study, a total of 12,963 subjects from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey were included. Odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals for the associations of MIAP with anthropometric indices, absolute HGS indices, and relative HGS indices were computed from binary logistic regression models. We built 3 models: a crude model, a model that was adjusted for age (Model 1), and a model that was adjusted for other relevant covariates (Model 2).

RESULTS

For men, the average age was 61.55 ± 0.16 years in the MIAP group and 66.49 ± 0.61 years in the non-MIAP group. For women, the average age was 61.99 ± 0.14 years in the MIAP group and 70.48 ± 0.61 years in the non-MIAP group. For both sexes, the MIAP group had lower diastolic blood pressure, shorter stature, greater WC, and a greater WHtR than did the non-MIAP group, and women tended to have greater systolic blood pressure, weight, and BMI than in men. HGS was strongly associated with the risk of MIAP in the Korean population. In men, relative HGS indices combined with WC and the WHtR had greater associations with MIAP than did the anthropometric indices and absolute HGS indices. However, in women, anthropometric indices, including weight, BMI, WC, and WHtR, were more strongly associated with MIAP than were absolute and relative HGS indices, unlike in men. When comparing absolute and relative HGS indices in women, relative HGS indices combined with BMI and weight was more strongly related to MIAP than was absolute HGS indices.

CONCLUSIONS

MIAP might be better identified by relative HGS than absolute HGS in both sexes. The overall magnitudes of the associations of MIAP with absolute and relative HGS are greater in men than in women.