Handgrip Strength and Cognitive Function among Elderly Koreans: Insights from the Korean Longitudinal Study of Ageing

This study aims to assess handgrip strength as a predictor of cognitive decline within men and women in Korea. A random-intercept logistic regression is fit to estimate the status changes in cognitive function throughout all rounds of the KLoSA, a nationally-representative survey of adults aged 45 years and older. Males in the highest quartile were 71.9% less likely to experience cognitive impairment than those in the lowest quartile. The odds of cognitive impairment for men in the third and second quartiles reduced by 62.6% and 60.4% respectively. Similarly, the odds of cognitive impairment for women declined as 72.7%, 63.0%, and 41.8% for fourth, third, and second quartile, respectively, compared with the lowest quartile. These results imply that assessing and monitoring handgrip strength may enable us to identify subgroups of the elderly with higher likelihood of cognitive impairment in Korea.