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Rethinking Low Handgrip Strength: Normative Values, Diagnostic Thresholds, and Sarcopenia Risk in Malaysian Older
Theng Choon Ooi1,2, Nurul Fatin Malek Rivan1, Suzana Shahar1
1Centre for Healthy Ageing and Wellness, Faculty of Health Sciences, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Jalan Raja Muda Abdul Aziz, Kuala Lumpur, Wilayah Persekutuan, Malaysia.
Aim:
To establish normative reference values for handgrip strength (HGS) in Malaysian older adults using cross-sectional data from the LRGS-TUA cohort study.
Methods:
We analyzed data from 2180 community-dwelling adults aged ≥60 years enrolled in the LRGS-TUA longitudinal study. Sex-specific percentile curves and age-specific normative reference values for absolute and body weight-normalized HGS were generated using the lambda-mu-sigma (LMS) method. We compared the prevalence of low HGS using the Asian Working Group for Sarcopenia (AWGS) 2019 cutoffs versus lowest quintile thresholds and assessed their associations with sarcopenia-related outcomes.
Results:
Peak mean absolute HGS occurred at age 60-64 years for both men (30.9 ± 6.6 kg) and women (19.7 ± 4.8 kg). Peak normalized HGS was observed at 65-69 years for men (0.47 ± 0.11 kgf/kg) and at 60-64 years for women (0.33 ± 0.09 kgf/kg), with women maintaining stable values through 70-74 years. The AWGS 2019 criteria identified substantially higher prevalence of low HGS (men: 46.2%; women: 48.7%) compared to lowest quintile thresholds (men: 19.6%; women: 20.1%). Both definitions demonstrated significant correlations with sarcopenia-related outcomes.
Conclusion:
Low handgrip strength prevalence was higher using AWGS 2019 criteria, though both definitions showed similar associations with sarcopenia-related outcomes. Their relative clinical utility requires confirmation through longitudinal validation.
