Associations between upper limb flexibility and all-cause mortality in the oldest-old

Area of Science:

• Gerontology
• Public Health
• Epidemiology

Background:

• Upper limb flexibility (ULF) is a feasible measure of physical function in the elderly.
• Assessing ULF can provide insights into the health status of long-lived populations.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the association between upper limb flexibility and all-cause mortality.
• To explore ULF as a predictor of mortality in community-dwelling oldest-old individuals in China.

Main Methods:

• Utilized data from 21,861 adults aged ≥80 years from the Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey.
• Assessed ULF through three physical tasks at baseline; followed participants until 2018 for survival data.
• Employed Cox proportional hazards regression, adjusting for demographic, behavioral, and health history covariates.

Main Results:

• After extensive follow-up, impaired ULF (left and right) was significantly associated with increased all-cause mortality risk.
• Right-sided ULF impairment showed a hazard ratio of 1.12 (95% CI: 1.05-1.20).
• Combined left and right ULF impairment presented the highest mortality risk (HR: 1.29; 95% CI: 1.19-1.38), with significant additive interaction.

Conclusions:

• Impaired upper limb flexibility is a significant risk factor for all-cause mortality in China's oldest-old.
• ULF, especially right-sided impairment, serves as a simple yet effective predictor of premature death in this demographic.
• Findings highlight the importance of ULF assessment in geriatric health evaluations.