Handgrip Strength Cannot Be Assumed a Proxy for Overall Muscle Strength
OBJECTIVES: Dynapenia, low muscle strength, is predictive for negative health outcomes and is usually expressed as handgrip strength (HGS). Whether HGS can be a proxy for overall muscle strength and whether this depends on age and health status is controversial. This study assessed the agreement between HGS and knee extension strength (KES) in populations differing in age and health status.DESIGN: Data were retrieved from 5 cohorts.SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS: Community, geriatric outpatient clinics, and a hospital. Five cohorts (960 individuals, 49.8% male) encompassing healthy young and older individuals, geriatric outpatients, and older individuals post hip fracture were included.MEASURES: …
Assessment of maximal handgrip strength: how many attempts are needed?
© 2017 The Authors. Background: Handgrip strength (HGS) is used to identify individuals with low muscle strength (dynapenia). The influence of the number of attempts on maximal HGS is not yet known and may differ depending on age and health status. This study aimed to assess how many attempts of HGS are required to obtain maximal HGS. Methods: Three cohorts (939 individuals) differing in age and health status were included. HGS was assessed three times and explored as continuous and dichotomous variable. Paired t-test, intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC) and Bland-Altman analysis were used to test reproducibility of HGS. The number of individuals with misclassified dynapenia at attemp…
The Physical Activity and Nutritional INfluences in Ageing (PANINI) Toolkit: a standardized approach towards physical activity and nutritional assessment of older adults
Assessing multiple domains of health in older adults requires multidimensional and large datasets. Consensus on definitions, measurement protocols and outcome measures is a prerequisite. The Physical Activity and Nutritional INfluences In Ageing (PANINI) Toolkit aims to provide a standardized toolkit of best-practice measures for assessing health domains of older adults with an emphasis on nutrition and physical activity. The toolkit was drafted by consensus of multidisciplinary and pan-European experts on ageing to standardize research initiatives in diverse populations within the PANINI consortium. Domains within the PANINI Toolkit include socio-demographics, general health, nutrition, ph…
Serum albumin and muscle measures in a cohort of healthy young and old participants
Consensus on clinically valid diagnostic criteria for sarcopenia requires a systematical assessment of the association of its candidate measures of muscle mass, muscle strength, and physical performance on one side and muscle-related clinical parameters on the other side. In this study, we systematically assessed associations between serum albumin as a muscle-related parameter and muscle measures in 172 healthy young (aged 18–30 years) and 271 old participants (aged 69–81 year) from the European MYOAGE study. Muscle measures included relative muscle mass, i.e., total- and appendicular lean mass (ALM) percentage, absolute muscle mass, i.e., ALM/height2 and total lean mass in kilograms, handg…
Plantarflexor Muscle-Tendon Properties are Associated With Mobility in Healthy Older Adults
BACKGROUND: Muscle mass, strength, and power are known determinants of mobility in older adults but there is limited knowledge on the influence of muscle architecture or tendon properties on mobility. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between mobility and plantarflexor muscle-tendon properties in healthy older adults.METHODS: A total of 52 subjects (age 70-81 years) were measured for 6-minute walk test (6MWT), timed "up and go"-test (TUG), isometric plantarflexion strength, Achilles tendon stiffness, triceps surae muscle architecture, lower extremity lean mass, isometric leg extension strength, and leg extension power. Partial correlations and multivariate regression…
Physical Activity and Nutrition INfluences In ageing (PANINI): consortium mission statement
First paragraph: Current demographic trends indicate that by the year 2020, almost one in five of the European population will be aged 65 years or over. Although life expectancy is increasing by 2 years per decade, the period of life spent in good health is not keeping pace and most Europeans spend their last decade in poor health. Consequently, there is an urgent need to understand how lifestyle factors can influence age-related changes from gene to society level and how they may be integrated into a net effect of healthy ageing. It is also crucial to develop and validate interventions and health policies to ensure that more of our older adults have a healthy and active later life. This is…
The prevalence of malnutrition according to the new ESPEN definition in four diverse populations
© 2015 Elsevier Ltd and European Society for Clinical Nutrition and Metabolism.Background & aims: Consensus on the definition of malnutrition has not yet been reached. Recently, The European Society for Clinical Nutrition and Metabolism (ESPEN) proposed a consensus definition of malnutrition. The aim of the present study was to describe the prevalence of malnutrition according to the ESPEN definition in four diverse populations. Methods: In total, 349 acutely ill middle-aged patients, 135 geriatric outpatients, 306 healthy old individuals and 179 healthy young individuals were included in the study. Subjects were screened for risk of malnutrition using the SNAQ. The ESPEN definition of maln…