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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Med.
Sec. Family Medicine and Primary Care
Volume 12 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fmed.2025.1573729
Muscle quality index correlates with Arthritis: A cross-sectional study from NHANES 2011-2014
Provisionally accepted- 1Jinan University, Guangzhou, China
- 2School of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Jinan University, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China
- 3Eighth Clinical Medical College, Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine, Foshan, Guangdong Province, China
- 4School of Acupuncture-Moxibustion and Tuina, Hebei University of Chinese Medicine, Shijiazhuang, Hebei, China
- 5Affiliated Jiangmen Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital of Jinan University, Jiangmen, Guangdong, China., Jiangmen, China
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Objectives: This study aimed to investigate the association between Muscle Quality Index (MQI) and arthritis using data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES)Methods: A cross-sectional analysis was conducted using data from 4,558 participants aged 20-60 years. MQI was calculated using handgrip strength and appendicular skeletal muscle mass obtained through Dual-energy X-ray Absorptiometry (DXA) scans. Arthritis status was determined based on self-reported physician diagnoses. Multivariable logistic regression models were applied to examine the relationship between MQI and arthritis, adjusting for potential confounders, including demographic, socioeconomic, and lifestyle factors. Subgroup and sensitivity analyses were performed to evaluate heterogeneity.Higher MQI was significantly associated with a lower risk of arthritis (adjusted OR = 0.73, 95% CI: 0.61 -0.88, P = 0.001). Subgroup analyses revealed stronger associations in participants aged 30 -40 years (OR = 0.47, 95% CI: 0.31 -0.71, P < 0.001), females (OR = 0.68, 95% CI: 0.54-0.87, P = 0.002), and non-Hispanic Black individuals (OR = 0.62, 95% CI: 0.43-0.89, P < 0.01). Sensitivity analysis confirmed a dose-response relationship, with participants in the highest MQI quartile having significantly lower odds of arthritis compared to the lowest quartile (adjusted OR = 0.69, 95% CI: 0.50-0.96, P = 0.027).Conclusions: MQI is inversely associated with arthritis prevalence, suggesting that maintaining muscle quality may be a critical factor in arthritis prevention. These findings highlight the importance of muscle health in public health strategies for arthritis management.
Keywords: muscle quality index, Arthritis, NHANES, Public Health, Cross-sectional research
Received: 09 Feb 2025; Accepted: 08 Apr 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Wang, Xu, Wang, Huang, Pan, Pan, Jia and Tang. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Shujie Tang, Jinan University, Guangzhou, China
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