Sex and Age-specific Association between Isokinetic Knee Extensor Muscle Strength and Diabetes Mellitus: A Cross-sectional Study from the Sports Program Service Study.

Introduction: Diabetes mellitus (DM) is an increasing public health concern in Japan and worldwide, highlighting the need for effective prevention. Lower limb muscle strength, a modifiable factor, may influence glycemic control, potentially in sex- and age-specific ways. This study examined the association between isokinetic knee extensor strength and DM prevalence in a large Japanese cohort.

Methods: A total of 14,017 Japanese individuals (men: 6,227; women: 7,790) aged 18-89 years participated in this study. All participants completed the maximum voluntary isokinetic knee extensor strength test (60°/s) and medical examination. DM was defined as blood glucose ≥126 mg/dL, hemoglobin A1c ≥6.5%, or hypoglycemic medication. Multivariable odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals were calculated using the lowest quartile knee muscle strength category as a reference after adjusting for potential confounders.

Results: The mean age of the participants was 50.1 years (standard deviation; 15.3); altogether, 1,225 participants (8.7%) had DM. Multivariable ORs of the highest quartile muscle strength were 0.61 (0.48-0.78) for men and 0.65 (0.57-0.88) for women, using the lowest quartile muscle strength as a reference. Knee extensor muscle strength was inversely associated with DM (p for trend <0.001 and 0.003, men and women, respectively). The inverse association was consistently observed in men aged 40 years and older, whereas it was less apparent in older women.

Conclusions: Isokinetic knee extensor muscle strength is inversely associated with the prevalence of DM, with potential differences by sex and age. These findings may help inform DM risk assessment and prevention strategies.