Each 1-kg increase in grip strength was associated with a 2.6% reduction in abdominal aortic calcification risk in women and 1.8% in men.
Is higher grip strength associated with a reduced prevalence of abdominal aortic calcification in adults?
Higher grip strength is independently associated with a lower prevalence of abdominal aortic calcification in both men and women, suggesting its potential utility as a practical biomarker for vascular calcification risk stratification.
Absolute Event Rate: 0% vs 0%
BackgroundAbdominal aortic calcification, a subclinical marker of atherosclerosis, shares pathophysiological pathways with musculoskeletal decline. Although grip strength is an established predictor of cardiovascular outcomes, its association with abdominal aortic calcification in sex-specific analysis remains underexplored.MethodsThis cross-sectional study analyzed data from 1683 adults in National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2013-2014. Abdominal aortic calcification was quantified via dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry using Kauppila scores (L1-L4), with abdominal aortic calcification defined as a score >0. Muscle strength was evaluated using a standardized grip strength measurement (Takei dynamometer). Multivariable logistic regression, adjusted for demographic, metabolic, and lifestyle factors, were used to examine sex-specific associations. Restricted cubic splines were applied to evaluate dose-response relationships.ResultsAmong 903 men (mean age, 58.3 ± 12.0 years) and 780 women (mean age, 57.2 ± 11.9 years), each 1-kg increase in grip strength was associated with a 1.8% reduction in abdominal aortic calcification risk (odds ratio, 0.982; 95% confidence interval: 0.971-0.993) in men and a 2.6% reduction (odds ratio, 0.974; 95% confidence interval: 0.955-0.993) in women. Dose-response curves demonstrated linear inverse relationships (p p for interaction > 0.05).ConclusionMuscle strength exhibits an independent, dose-dependent inverse association with the prevalence of abdominal aortic calcification, which persists across demographic subgroups. These findings support the use of grip strength as a practical biomarker for abdominal aortic calcification risk stratification and highlight musculoskeletal health as a potential target for interventions to prevent vascular calcification.
Li et al. (Sun,) reported a other. Each 1-kg increase in grip strength was associated with a 2.6% reduction in abdominal aortic calcification risk in women and 1.8% in men.