Association among calf circumference, physical performance, and depression in the elderly Chinese population: a cross-sectional study

Abstract

Background Depression and sarcopenia are common diseases in the elderly population. However, the association between them is controversial. Based on the Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey (CLHLS) database, a cross-sectional study was conducted to explore the relationship of calf circumference and physical performance with depression. Methods From the 8th wave of CLHLS conducted in 2018, data on calf circumference, physical performance, depressive symptoms, and demographic, socioeconomic, and health-related characteristics were collected. Multiple logistic regression was conducted to explore the impact of calf circumference, physical performance and their combination on depressive symptoms. Results We enrolled a total of 12,227 participants aged 83.4 ± 11.0 years, including 5689 (46.5%) men and 6538 (53.5%) women. Patients with depression were more likely to have low calf circumference (2274 [68.2%] vs. 5406 [60.8%], p<0.001) and poor physical performance (3[0, 6] vs. 1[0, 4], p<0.001). A significant multiplicative interaction was found between calf circumference and physical performance in their effect on depression. After adjusting for confounding factors, multiple logistic regression showed that a significant inverse correlation persisted between physical performance and depressive symptoms in normal (odds ratio [OR] = 1.20, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.15–1.26, p<0.001) and low (OR = 1.14, 95% CI: 1.11–1.18, p<0.001) calf circumference group, while the association between calf circumference and depression disappeared. Participants with low calf circumference and poor physical performance were 2.21 times more likely to have depression than those with normal calf circumference and physical performance. All results were found to be robust in sensitivity analyses. Conclusions Physical performance was significantly associated with depression in the elderly Chinese population. Attention should be paid to assess depressive symptoms in patients with poor physical performance.

Análisis de la relación entre sarcopenia y síntomas depresivos en adultos mayores: una revisión de alcance

“…(Z. Chen et al, 2022;Cheng et al, 2021;Darroch et al, 2022;de Souza et al, 2021;Delibaş et al, 2021;Gao et al, 2021;He et al, 2022;Jin et al, 2021;Kirk et al, 2021;Kitamura et al, 2020;Kurita et al, 2021;Lee & Lee, 2023;Lin et al, 2022;Lu et al, 2023;Nunes et al, 2021;Suzan et al, 2022;Tan et al, 2022;Zhang et al, 2022). En la tabla 1 se muestran las características y principales resultados de los estudios que incluyeron un análisis transversal.…”

“…Sobre esta línea de investigación, Jin et al (2021), Lu et al (2023), Tan et al (2022) y Zhang et al (2022), encontraron que las alteraciones en alguno de los componentes de la sarcopenia (masa muscular, fuerza y rendimiento físico) incrementaba la probabilidad de presentar síntomas depresivos en los AM.…”

Cognitive impairment is a risk factor for decreased physical performance in the elderly

“…Several studies have showed that depression elevates the subsequent risk of physical disability [ [32] , [33] , [34] , [35] ]. However, we found no association between depression and decreased physical performance.…”

Waist-to-calf circumstance ratio and cognitive function among Chinese older adults: Mediating roles of physical performance and social activity

“…Similar to sarcopenia, SO has been linked to frailty and osteoporosis (Fan et al, 2021 ; Chou et al, 2022 ). Moreover, individuals with SO are at greater risk of metabolic disorders and reduced physical performance, such as walking speed, than those with sarcopenia or obesity alone (Sun et al, 2021 ; Tan et al, 2022 ). It was proposed that individuals with SO tended to suffer from impairment of living functions and lower physical capabilities during aging (Hayes and Preacher, 2014 ; Jia et al, 2020 ; Tanaka et al, 2022 ).…”