Associations of Handgrip Asymmetry With Impaired Health-Related Quality of Life Among Older Adults in South Korea: A Cross-Sectional Study Using National Survey Data

Abstract

This study aimed to examine the associations of handgrip strength (HGS) and asymmetry with health-related quality of life among South Korean older adults. We enrolled 7395 older adults from the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Health-related quality of life was measured using the EuroQol-5 Dimension. Weakness was defined as a HGS of <26 kg for men and <18 kg for women. Handgrip strength symmetry was defined as an HGS ratio of 0.9:1.1, and HGS asymmetry was defined as a ratio outside that range. Data were analyzed using the Rao-Scott χ2, F test, and multivariate logistic regression. Compared with those in the “symmetric HGS and not weak” group, those in the “asymmetric HGS and weak” group had impaired health-related quality of life for all variables among men (odds ratios [ORs] = 1.67-3.75, 95% confidence interval [CI] [1.14, 6.27]). A greater risk of impaired self-care (SC; odds ratio [OR] = 2.33, 95% CI [1.67, 3.25]) and anxiety/depression (AD; OR = 1.40, 95% CI [1.04, 1.88]) was observed among women in the “asymmetric HGS and weak” group. Handgrip weakness and asymmetry are associated with impaired health-related quality of life. Handgrip asymmetry can be a clinical marker of health-related quality of life in older adults and must be measured alongside HGS.

Risk factors associated with weak and asymmetric handgrip strength in older Chinese adults

“…Moreover, in the current study, we found that 15.91% (Method A) and 20.65% (Method B) of individuals presented with comorbid forms of HGS weakness and HGS asymmetry, which differs slightly from previous studies. For example, a previous analysis that enrolled 330 community‐dwelling adults aged 55 and over reported that 12.1% of them exhibited weak and asymmetric HGS (K. K. Chen, Ho, & Chau, 2022), and another study that included 7395 older South Koreans reported a 10.22% incidence of this comorbid condition (Baek et al, 2022), while a study of 364 geriatrics outpatients aged ≥60 years reported the proportion was 21.43% (Lin et al, 2022). The slight differences between these results, apart from age, may be due to variations in factors such as the incidence of chronic disease incidence, geographical location, nutritional conditions, or lifestyle factors between the studies, together with the criteria used for determining HGS weakness and asymmetry.…”

“…HGS abnormalities, including weak or asymmetric HGS, are common in older adults Minghui Weng and Jianlin Pu contributed equally to this article, and should be considered co-first authors of this article. (Baek et al, 2022;Li et al, 2018;. Both weak HGS and asymmetric HGS alone have been reported to be associated with poor future health outcomes among older adults, including limitations in the specific activities of daily living (Mahoney et al, 2022), elevated risks of falls and fractures (Dowling et al, 2023;Go et al, 2021), all-cause mortality (Li et al, 2018), and the incidence of neurological and psychiatric disorders (Z.…”

“…HGS is influenced by age (Santos et al, 2020; Suetta et al, 2019; Zoico et al, 2004) and peaks at age 30 in both sexes (Gómez‐Campos et al, 2022) whereafter it begins to decline from ages 40 and 50 in women and men, respectively (Schlüssel et al, 2008). HGS abnormalities, including weak or asymmetric HGS, are common in older adults (Baek et al, 2022; Li et al, 2018; McGrath, Clark, et al, 2021). Both weak HGS and asymmetric HGS alone have been reported to be associated with poor future health outcomes among older adults, including limitations in the specific activities of daily living (Mahoney et al, 2022), elevated risks of falls and fractures (Dowling et al, 2023; Go et al, 2021), all‐cause mortality (Li et al, 2018), and the incidence of neurological and psychiatric disorders (Z. Chen, Ho, & Chau, 2022).…”

Relative Handgrip Strength Mediates the Relationship between Hemoglobin and Health-Related Quality of Life in Older Korean Adults

“…The current findings of the study are also in line with the findings from previous studies reporting the associations between handgrip strength and HRQoL in older adults. For example, Baek, Kim, and Kim [ 20 ], by analyzing nationwide survey data, showed that weak handgrip strength and handgrip strength asymmetry (defined as a handgrip strength of >10% stronger on either hand) were associated with impaired HRQoL in older Korean adults. Kang, Lim, and Park [ 19 ] analyzed the 2015 KNHNES data and demonstrated that low handgrip strength correlated with poor HRQoL—especially mobility and pain/discomfort variables of the EQ-5D—in Korean adults aged 20 years and older.…”

“…From this perspective, loss of muscle strength assessed by handgrip strength is associated with health conditions, sarcopenia, disability, impaired physical functioning, and cognitive decline in older adults [ 17 ]. Additionally, handgrip strength is a biomarker for a lower HRQoL in older populations [ 18 , 19 , 20 ] and cancer survivors [ 21 , 22 ].…”