Weakness Is Associated with Time to Incident Chronic Heart Failure in Aging Americans.

OBJECTIVE: Handgrip strength is considered a biomarker of nutritional status and strength capacity, which are both linked to heart complications. However, it is not well understood how weakness, as measured by handgrip strength, factors into common heart conditions seen in aging adults such as chronic heart failure (CHF). The purpose of this study was to determine the association between weakness and incident CHF for aging Americans. DESIGN: Longitudinal-Panel. SETTING: Physical measures were completed during enhanced face-to-face interviews. The core interview was typically conducted over the telephone. PARTICIPANTS: Data from 17,431 adults aged at least 50 years who identified as Black or White, completed interviews without a proxy, and participated in at least one wave of the 2006-2014 waves of the Health and Retirement Study were included. MEASUREMENTS: Handgrip strength was measured with a hand-held dynamometer. Healthcare provider diagnosed CHF was self-reported at each wave. Sex- and race-specific maximal handgrip strength cut-points were used for determining weakness (Black men: <40-kilograms, Black women: <31-kilograms, White men: <35-kilograms, White women: <22-kilograms). A covariate-adjusted Cox model analyzed the association between weakness and incident CHF. RESULTS: Of those included, 5,397 (31.0%) were weak and 327 (1.9%) developed CHF during the mean follow-up of 4.7±2.7 years. Those who were weak had a 35% higher risk (hazard ratio: 1.35; 95% confidence interval: 1.05, 1.74) of developing CHF, compared to those who were not-weak. CONCLUSION: Measures of handgrip strength should be utilized by healthcare providers for assessing age-related weakness, nutritional status, and CHF risk. Likewise, interventions aiming to prevent or treat CHF in aging adults should incorporate measures of handgrip strength for helping to determine efficacy of intervention programs.

Physiological profile of age-group wrestlers.

This research compares the physiological characteristics of young wrestlers grouped by age. Three hundred and twenty eight wrestlers (mean age 15.99 +/- 1.08 years and mean weight 65.94 +/- 11.01 kg) attending a wrestling training camp between 1990 and 1994 were tested to determine their physiological capacities. The physiological profile included body weight, body composition measured by hydrostatic weighing, sum of skinfolds, aerobic power, grip strength, absolute and relative endurance, situps, pushups, fatigue, and flexibility measures. Wrestlers were divided into three age categories: G1: < or = 15 years of age; G2: 16 years of age; and G3: > or = 17 years of age. Analysis of variance with Tukey post hoc test revealed statistically significant (p < 0.05) differences in body weight (G1 < G2,G3), fat free weight (G1 < G2,G3), grip strength (G1 < G2,G3), absolute (G1 < G2,G3; G2 < G3) and relative endurance (G1 < G3,G2 < G3), pushups (G1 < G3; G2 < G3), sit and reach (G1 < G3), Margaria-Kalamen power (G1 < G2,G3), and Wingate arm and leg mean powers (G1 < G2,G3). When covaried for body weight and fat free weight, there were no significant differences in grip strength and Margaria-Kalamen power. Significant differences in arm mean power when covaried for body weight and fat free weight (G1 < G3) and for leg mean power when covaried for body weight (G1 < G3) were noted. These wrestlers were similar to young wrestlers in published research, with low body fat, excellent aerobic capacity and flexibility. When separated by age, the younger wrestlers possess less body weight, fat free weight, grip length, and power measures, possibly due to lower muscle mass.