AUTHOR=Gómez-Campos Rossana , Vidal Espinoza Rubén , de Arruda Miguel , Ronque Enio Ricardo Vaz , Urra-Albornoz Camilo , Minango Juan Carlos , Alvear-Vasquez Fernando , la Torre Choque Christian de , Castelli Correia de Campos Luis Felipe , Sulla Torres Jose , Cossio-Bolaños Marco 

TITLE=Relationship between age and handgrip strength: Proposal of reference values from infancy to senescence

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Public Health

VOLUME=10

YEAR=2023

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/public-health/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2022.1072684

DOI=10.3389/fpubh.2022.1072684

ISSN=2296-2565

ABSTRACT=<sec><title>Introduction</title><p>Measurement of hand grip strength (HGS) has been proposed as a key component of frailty and has also been suggested as a central biomarker of healthy aging and a powerful predictor of future morbidity and mortality.</p></sec><sec><title>Objectives</title><p>(a) To determine whether a nonlinear relationship model could improve the prediction of handgrip strength (HGS) compared to the linear model and (b) to propose percentiles to evaluate HGS according to age and sex for a regional population of Chile from infancy to senescence.</p></sec><sec><title>Methods</title><p>A cross-sectional descriptive study was developed in a representative sample of the Maule region (Chile). The volunteers amounted to 5,376 participants (2,840 men and 2,536 women), with an age range from 6 to 80 years old. Weight, height, HGS (right and left hand) according to age and sex were evaluated. Percentiles were calculated using the LMS method [(L (Lambda; asymmetry), M (Mu; median), and S (Sigma; coefficient of variation)].</p></sec><sec><title>Results and discussion</title><p>There were no differences in HGS from 6 to 11 years of age in both sexes; however, from 12 years of age onwards, males presented higher HGS values in both hands (<italic>p</italic> &lt; 0.05). The linear regression between age with HGS showed values of <italic>R</italic><sup>2</sup> = 0.07 in males and <italic>R</italic><sup>2</sup> = 0.02 in females. While in the non-linear model (cubic), the values were: <italic>R</italic><sup>2</sup> = 0.50 to 0.51 in men and <italic>R</italic><sup>2</sup> = 0.26 in women. The percentiles constructed by age and sex were: P5, P15, P50, P85, and P95 by age range and sex. This study demonstrated that there is a nonlinear relationship between chronological age with HGS from infancy to senescence. Furthermore, the proposed percentiles can serve as a guide to assess and monitor upper extremity muscle strength levels at all stages of life.</p></sec>