Association between Relative Handgrip Strength and C-Reactive Protein in Adults

Abstract

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to investigate whether obesity indicators are mediated in the association between muscle strength and inflammation levels, and further confirm the association between muscle strength level by sex and age and inflammatory levels. Methods: In this study, 3,234 adults living in rural areas were surveyed from 2007 to 2015 and the data was finally analyzed on 2,149 adults. To identify that obesity indicators are mediated in relation to the association between relative grip strength and C-reactive protein (CRP) level, odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) were calculated using logistic regression analysis (p<0.05). Results: As confounding variables were adjusted, the odds ratio for high inflammatory conditions was lower at a high (OR, 0.58; 95% CI, 0.40–0.85) or medium (OR, 0.64; 95% CI, 0.46–0.90) level of relative grip strength than a low level of relative grip strength. However, there were no significant results if the body fat percentage was added for the confounding variable. When the association between relative grip strength and inflammatory conditions was divided by sex, for women, the odds ratio about high inflammatory conditions was gradually decreased as the relative grip level increased (medium level: OR, 0.55; 95% CI, 0.35–0.87; high level: OR, 0.49; 95% CI, 0.30–0.82). The association of relative grip strength with inflammatory conditions was shown differently in age groups. Conclusion: In conclusion, improvement of muscle strength is a factor that can lower the level of inflammation, and it is important to lower the level of inflammation that can cause cardiovascular disease through resistance exercise differentiated by age and sex.